


S Embroidered Handkerchief

by Jaxygreeneyes



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Anxiety, Drama & Romance, F/M, Friendship, No Jenova (Compilation of FFVII), References to Depression, Sane Sephiroth (Compilation of FFVII)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-27
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-08 20:14:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 54,335
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27232585
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jaxygreeneyes/pseuds/Jaxygreeneyes
Summary: You thought you were a boring person, a girl that prefers routine and simplicity. You needed it to ground yourself from the ongoing darkness that crept up behind you. But what you didn’t realize was maybe you needed someone to help you along the way, guide you along the way, or maybe you needed someone to break that routine and turn your life upside down.
Relationships: Sephiroth (Compilation of FFVII)/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 39
Kudos: 87





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello Friends!  
> I just want to say I by no means am a writer. I love reading FanFics about Final Fantasy and I love romance.  
> After months now of reading non stop and obsessing about when the next Final Fantasy VII Remake Part 2 will come out, I decided to put my fantasies on paper. Anyways please be kind and hopefully you become just as obsessed as me in my fantasy!

The bright morning sun was peaking through the blinds, cascading Nola in a hue of orange and yellow. Engulfing her light brown hair and pale skin as if she were on fire. Turning over she opened her green eyes and saw her alarm read 6:00am.

I guess there is no point of waiting another half hour.

She slowly got out of bed, stretched her arms and legs, cracking her back in the meantime. Walking over to her bathroom to wash up and apply her subtle make up. Just mascara and brown eye shadow with a touch of lip gloss. Nothing over the top, just enough to accentuate her natural beauty. She started her day the same as always. Getting dressed -today she thought she would go for a black leather mini skirt, black tights, black heeled boots and a dark green shirt- she made her bed, grabbed her coffee and left for work.

It was not much of a commute if any. She lived in the housing complex of the Turks. So, getting to work meant taking an elevator to another building, then another elevator to her floor where she worked as an administrative assistant for the Turks. 

She laughed, “administrative assistant...more like under paid assistant, under paid maid, under paid babysitter, and under paid....”

Well the list could go on, but she loved what she did. She loved who she worked for and her colleagues. She worked for the calm and distant Turk leader Tseng. He was the closest thing she had to family in a long time, and in his own way he had a special place for her in that cold heart of his. 

She started to work for Shinra 5 years ago, it happened by fluke. She left home in Mideel soon after her parents were killed in a car crash. Took off to Midgar to see the big city and blow all her money before she would come back home and try to take her life. Being alone was hard for someone with depression and anxiety. Her parents were the only ones who could help her through and when they died, it was all heightened. But when she found herself staring at the tall immaculate building of Shinra, she stumbled right into Tseng. One thing lead to the next and she got hired working for him at the tender age of 16. Now 21 she could not picture her life any other way. 

“C’mon elevator hurry up” she whispered to herself. She pressed the button using the hand holding her coffee. As if the elevator would magically appear if she continued to press it 20 more times.

As she entered the elevator and pressed her floor number, she mind numbingly went through the list of things she had to get done.

“Organize Turk archive, prepare reports for upcoming missions for Reno and Rude, prepare Tseng’s meeting he has with the Director of Soldier” 

She was prone to talking to herself a lot for a way to stay sane. Though she did have some close friends to talk to she was more of an introvert. Which fooled many as her boisterous contagious laugh would make anyone believe she wanted to be the center of attention. She smiled at anyone and everyone, as if almost taunting them to start a conversation with her. And when they would she would immediately regret it. She preferred her solitude, listening to music or reading books. 

Stepping off the elevator she round the corner and **BANG**

Her coffee flew out of her hand, up towards to sky and down on her top. Coating her entire chest with the boiling hot liquid

“Oh my gosh! That’s so hot!! Geezzz!”

“I’m so sorry! I wasn’t paying attention, here let me help you”

As she pinched her top from sticking to her body and scorching her more, she looked up to see a bouncing young soldier with black spiky hair trying his best to help you but frowning and retracting his hand every time he got close to your top.

“Zack!”

The sheepish looking boy turned around and put his head down, looking like a puppy who was caught in the trash can.

“Angeal! It was an accident! I wasn’t looking, I was too excited for my train-“

“It’s okay” Nola said with a small smile.  
“I know it was an accident, I didn’t think my Monday would start with my boobs on fire” she blushed realizing she shouldn’t have said such an inappropriate comment in front of the young man.

The older looking man who could almost pass as the younger Soldier’s brother, equally handsome with his dark as night hair wearing the classic 1st class solider uniform, walked up to you both. Trailing behind, you recognized the other two soldiers. Genesis Rhapsodos and the Great General Sephiroth. 

You were quite familiar with the trio, how could you not be. Everyone who worked at Shinra knew of the elite trio. Plus, you’ve heard Reno talking shit about them... well mostly about Genesis. He was deemed as Mr. Dramatic or Mr. Doesn’t shut up about Loveless. 

The Turks and Soldiers had a civil relationship, it was more of a sibling relationship. One where you had to have your Mom yelling at you both to knock it off.

Zack laughed at your comment, the two of you sharing the same hue of pink on your cheeks. 

Genesis came strolling up next, his boots almost made the same sound as yours as they hit the floor with every step, his red leather coat swishing with every movement and his blue eyes locking onto yours. 

“Excuse the puppy, he gets over excited when he knows he’s going for a walk.” Genesis snipped, he careful paced himself in front of Angeal as if to block him. 

“Don’t start Genesis” Angeal glared at his back.

“Like I said it’s fine, it was an accident” she again smiled at Zack.

Too focused at looking at Zack she didn’t realize the General came casually strolling up, his long luxurious silver hair swaying left to right with every long stride he took. His piercing slit mako eyes examining you from head to toe. He wore his 1st class uniform which consisted of mostly all black leather apart from his silver pauldrons that moulded to his broad shoulders. 

A white handkerchief was pushed in front of your face and waved.

You followed the hand that held it, black leather gloves roaming up a muscular arm that belonged to the Great General.

A deep sultry voice spoke that didn’t tell you to look but commanded you to look. 

“For you miss, apologies for 2nd class soldier Zack Fair.”

You took the handkerchief and craned you’re neck to look at the General in his eyes. Yes, he was very handsome and deadly but for some reason you never were intimidated by him. Probably from working with the Turks for a while. You got used to be around very powerful dangerous men.

“Thank you, sir.” You said with a nod and a small smile.

He looked at you with an expressionless face. Staring down into your bright green eyes. You saw his eyes trail down your face, down your neck and to your chest where a coffee stain was already appearing.

He quickly looked up to see you watching him and with a turn of his heel he was walking down the hallway past you. 

“Anyways I should be going but again please don’t feel bad” You said to Zack.

Leaning your torso around Genesis you giggled to the dark-haired man “And please don’t take this out on him during training” 

He softly smiled at you, nodded, and left pulling the puppy by his collar. Genesis remained close to you. Looking you up and down as if devouring you with his blue mako eyes. He was quite breathtaking up close. His reddish hair seemed to flow without wind, his taunt muscles peaking through his black shirt, even his stance could make a simple girl go weak to her knees. He let out a quiet sigh before leaving in the direction of the others. 

You looked down at your top “Well this morning sucks already, I don’t have time to go back home but thankfully the dark green hides the coffee stain.”

You slowly made your way to the Turk archives. 

Along the way you kept thinking of the General’s eyes and how they lingered on you. How they slowly crept along your face and down your neck. Was he thinking of taking his strong hands and wrapping them around it? He was known to be very cold and stoic man. Many feared him as he was the leader of the Shinra army. The leader whose killed many during the ongoing wars between Shinra and Wutai. But what you kept thinking about was why he gave you his handkerchief. You looked down at the coffee stained piece of fabric.

It was silky smooth and had a silver tone to it much like his hair. And In the left corner was the letter S embroidered into the fabric. 

He could have just kept walking by you, not caring as he has done with many people here but why did he stop to help you? Why did he stare? And why are you caring so much??

You weren’t infatuated with the General or Genesis and Angeal and you certainly weren’t part of those crazy stupid fan girl clubs. It just bugged you that the three of them each gave you a different vibe. A vibe that your introverted soul could not handle.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

You peered down at your mechanical silver watch and read 12:30pm. 

“Might as well get some lunch.” You thought to yourself. 

You stepped off the squeaky unreliable ladder in the dusty archives. The room was dark and gloomy, the walls were a deep shade of blue. Not even the harsh luminescent lights could brighten the place up. There were endless amounts of rows with books, files, papers, and tapes that belonged to the Turks. Most were old records, but some were classified dossiers that contain past missions, past employee records and past captive reports. Working for the Turks you got used to seeing the horrible things the world could do. You knew what you signed up for, but some things still got under your skin. Those things would keep you up at night, cause horrendous ongoing nightmares. Multiple occasions Tseng would check up on you to make sure you were okay or would assign you vacation time. But those were only worst-case scenarios. 

You sauntered down the hallway to the elevator, pushed the button and waited for the car to ride up. Once arrived you stepped in and pressed for the ground floor. 

Since today started off like garbage you had to treat yourself. And the only way was in Sector 5’s burger joint. You liked going there because not a lot of people knew of the place. It was too grimy for any Shinra executive to eat there.

With a smile on your face you rode down the elevator, salivating over your soon to be lunch, when the elevator stopped on the Soldier floor and in came no other than Zack. 

“Hey!! Coffee girl!”

“Hey” You said quietly. “My name is actually Nola” You said with a smile and your hand held out.

He took your hand with probably more force than necessary, but you knew it was because of the Mako enhancements the Soldiers received. 

“Off to lunch? I’m glad I ran into you. I need to apologize again for today. I must make it up to you! I’ll buy you a new top!”

“There’s no need Zack.”

He looked almost disappointed as he dropped his gaze to the floor a bit defeated in the process. 

“.... I’m about to go for lunch, care to join? You can buy for me?” You blurted out, mentally face palming yourself for falling for the guilt trip.

“Yes!” He practically yelled. 

“I go to this burger joint in Sector 5, not sure if that is okay with you or no-“

“It’s perfect! I eat basically anything, so burgers are perfect!”

The two of you walked to the place, he opened the door for you like a gentleman which had you blushing for no reason. You’ve been around men before especially at work, and you’ve gone on dates before but just “hanging” with the opposite sex wasn’t something you did often.

You both sat down in a booth across from one another. The burger place looked like your typical fast-food joint. Colorful walls, pictures of food everywhere, booths and tables filled the place. Only a few others occupied the booths.

An older lady approached the table with her ticket in hand.

“What can I get y’all for today?” She looked at you first.

“I’ll get the triple patty cheeseburger with everything on it, fries on the side, a side of onion rings and a glass of water please.”

You looked up to see Zack, jaw dropped staring at you.

“What?”

“I just have never been around a girl who eats that much, I’ll have the same please!”

“Not sure if I should take that as a compliment” You laughed along with him.

You and Zack ate your lunches and talked mostly about work and idle chit chat. You had to admire him, when he spoke of his career, he was very passionate. You could tell he cared about what he did. He had a strong relationship with his mentor Angeal. He also spoke about his hobbies, how he played video games in his spare time, ate junk food with his friends Cloud, Kunsel and Luxiere. The more and more you learned about him the more you realized how similar he was to you. It was almost like an instant connection with him, except he was very outgoing, and you weren’t. Which prompted you to say the next line without worrying about what his reaction would be.

“I’m sorry... I don’t want to come across weird or anything, but I feel as if we were meant to meet. I know it sounds stupid but-“

“It doesn’t sound stupid.” Zack interjected. “I knew the minute you ordered your lunch we would get along perfectly” he said with a huge smile on his face. “I’m almost happy I spilt your coffee on you the morning.”

“Yea.. me too.” You slowly smiled back.

You both walked back to work, he bid you goodbye as you strolled into the Turk office to prep the files.

As the day progressed you wished you had gone home to change. Your shirt was rock hard, sticky, and smelt strongly of coffee. 

“Here Tseng, I have the reports for your meeting. I also gave the mission reports to Reno and Rude.”

Tseng was in his office. The whole room was practically black. Everything was shiny and there wasn’t a speck of dust to be found. He looked up with furrowed eyebrows and a stern expression on his face. His black hair was slicked back into a half ponytail, he stood up, straighten his immaculate suit, and moved around his desk to rest in front.

“What happened?”

“What do you mean sir?”

“You smell of coffee and your top is stained”

“Sorry sir I had an accident with Soldier Zack this morning. I didn’t want to go back home and delay the day, so I just continued with my shirt being stained.”

“Hmm” he said as his eyebrows softened.  
“Next time just go home and change Nola. I rather you be late than look unpresentable” 

“Yes sir, sorry sir” You said looking down at the floor, ashamed and embarrassed. Looking at your heeled boots you noticed a pair of shiny black dress shoes come close to yours. You looked up to see Tseng inches away from you.

“You don’t need to apologize Nola, I only want you be comfortable” Tseng said with what could be classified as a smile.

“You may go now and continue your duties, dismissed.”

You bowed your head and walked out of his office back to the archives. Once inside you remembered something, the handkerchief! I must return this to the General. But how. I don’t want to run into him and have another moment of him just staring at me, judging me. And of course, I have to wash it first. Maybe I could mail it? Or just forget it? I’m sure he has more at home. Or Zack! You could give it to Zack to give back! No that’s too cowardly, I’ll just drop it off at his office tonight. I’ll go home, wash it and return it. Easy as pie! 

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Later that night you made your way over to the General’s office, having called his secretary a few hours earlier to make sure it would be okay to come by at night. She insisted it would be best since the General wouldn’t be around.

You turned the corner on the executive suite floor of Soldier and found yourself staring at his door. Your heartbeat was thumping so much you could hear it in your ears. Your hands began to clam up as you turned the doorknob and entered his office.

It was breathtaking. The floor and walls were covered in white marble, the furniture was a deep shade of dark wood. Everything looked like it had its place. The moon was shining in and captivating every inch of his office. It smelt of pine needles and citrus. You stopped to take it all in. Afraid you would mess it up, you slowly walked to his desk and placed the clean pressed handkerchief on his desk with a small note that just said “thanks” straight to the point, I think the General would appreciate that, you laughed. As you turned your body around to leave you yelped as a shadow was blocking and towering the door. 

“What are you doing in my office.” There stood the tall beautiful terrifying General as he raised his eyebrow and made his way over to you in only a couple of steps. He towered over you; your eyes fell to his pale well defined chest which was exposed except for the Soldier straps that crossed his pecs. 

You looked up into his eyes which somehow illuminated the entire room. You froze. You couldn’t speak. You. Were. Screwed.


	2. Chapter 2

Remember when you said you weren’t intimidated by this man? Well that has gone out the window! It must have been the fact that you were caught or the fact it was pitch black other than the light shining from his eyes but in his very moment you were intimidated. You could have confessed to crimes you didn’t even commit! That’s how bad it was.

“Sorry sir, I thought you weren’t going to be here.”

“It was premediated then? Breaking into my office.”

Shocked, you spoke again “I wouldn’t say broke in, it was unlocked, if you had sensitive material in here you should have locked it” You squeaked with every bit of confidence but it came off as arrogant.

With his eyebrow even more raised than before, he took one more step to be almost centimeters away from your body. You could feel his hot breath on your head, the smell of leather invaded your nose. You kept your eyes forward at his pale chest. His fingers lifted your chin, so you were forced to make eye contact with him.

“That doesn’t answer my question.”

“I-I was just dropping off your handkerchief from this morning, your secretary said it would be best to come at night.” You barely managed to get out as your hand shakily pointed to his desk.

His eyes still boring into yours followed your hand to his desk where his silky fabric laid. A small smile formed his lips, much like how Tseng would smile except the General’s was more menacing and seductive. 

“Hmph, next time make sure I am here to accompany you while entering any Soldier executive’s office, especially mine, am I clear?” He dropped his hand that was forcing your chin up and took a step to the side in order for you to leave.

“Yes sir, goodnight sir.”

“Goodnight....Miss Nola.”

The way he said your name sent shivers down your spine. How did he even know my name?

You walked out of his office and dashed down the hallway to the elevator. Heart still hammering away in your chest, palms even more sweaty and a weird feeling developing in your stomach. 

You finally made it back to your apartment and crashed onto your bed.

“Stupid General, stupid mako eyes, stupid leather gloves, stupid coffee!” 

You pulled the covers over your body, made sure your alarm was on and drifted off to sleep.

__________________________________________________________________________________  
The rest of the week was uneventful. You didn’t run into a certain General but you did run into Angeal and Zack in the elevator. Zack was gushing to Angeal about your lunch and how much food you managed to eat. It made you feel awkward and embarrassed, but the 1st class soldier laughed, shook his head and insisted he come along next time. Zack was more than pleased to hear this and even started to throw dates at you in the future to do so. 

It was finally the end of the week and you couldn’t be happier! You get to go home, put on some sweats, do laundry and have take out. The regular Friday night ritual. You were of course a creature of habit. It stabilized you, it grounded you and kept you on a path away from your darkness. Away from the pain of your family.

When you finally crawled into bed around midnight, you knew it wouldn’t be an easy sleep. With having that moment with the General in his office, it set you off in a spiraling haze. A haze only Tseng could help you out of, but you knew another way to help this. But it was more reckless. 

You hopped out of bed, threw on a sweater, grabbed your phone and keys and made your way out the door. 

Reno showed you this place actually, he uses it to secretly smoke, but he told you that no one comes up here and knows of it. It was a door that lead to the roof on the 69th floor in the main Shinra building. It was quite dangerous since there was no guard railing, but you knew you had to get some fresh air and squash whatever darkness was coming up.

You opened the door to the roof and we’re immediately met with a gust of cold air. You shut the door behind you and made your way to your usual spot. It was the perfect look out. You could see for miles, all the lights below looked like small dots. You sat down, a safe distance away from the edge, and laid down to look up at the sky. Although with the reactors it was hard to see any stars, you managed to pick a few bright shining ones.

This was your happy place. You could slowly feel the anxiety leave your body. Breathing in and out, filling your lungs full of the crisp air then spitting it out. This calming notion was taught by your Mother. She would drag you outside into the grass when you were having an episode and stare at the stars that lit up the Mideel sky. Showing you this breathing technique to calm you down. A small tear slide from your eye as the memory was still vivid in your mind.

Once again too caught up not to notice your surroundings or that again a particular General was watching you from afar.

His green reptilian eyes slithered over your form as it laid down. Watching you try to hold back some tears. He slowly made his way to you. His boots barely making a sound as if he floated above the ground. He stood over you, looking down.

Suddenly broken out of your serene moment. That deep commanding voice once spoke to you again. 

“You should not be here. It is dangerous and off limits to Shinra employees.”

You jolted upright and spun your head up to look at the silver General staring at you. His hair was whipping with the wind as it blew in every direction. He looked like a god in this very moment. A god that probably wanted to throw you off the building from the way he was examining you, but none the less a god. 

Feeling a burst of confidence that stemmed from his own actions that made you come up here in the first place. You stood up puffed out your chest, walked so you invaded his space looked him dead in the eyes.

“I don’t care if it’s dangerous and I don’t care if it’s off limits, I came up here to get away from it all, not to be told what I can and can’t do!” You stomped your foot with the last word, instantly regretting how it probably made you look like a child. 

The boost of confidence did not last long as a tear started to slide down your cheek.

Waiting for the General to raise his voice and put you in your place. 

You felt his thumb which was now ungloved, wipe away the tear with such a feathery touch you almost didn’t feel it. He looked down at you with more of a soften expression, one you didn’t think he was capable of giving. His hand cupped the side of your face as he gently rubbed your cheek with his thumb. You relished in his touch. You needed to be touched like this. 

You were flabbergasted, your heart beating as if it were it explode any second. You were sure with his enhanced hearing he could hear it. A small upwards tug on the left side of his mouth told you he could.

His hand slowly crept down off your face back to the side of his body. He straightened his posture and turned his back to leave.

Before he could reach the door, he turned his face to you and whispered “I only want to ensure your safety, please” he said in a begging tone “Do not get too close to the edge... at least when I’m not around to protect you.” 

With that he left, leaving you missing his soft touch, and leaving you with more questions than before but the one that stood out the most. 

Why does he even care? 

———————————————---------------------

It had been a few weeks since that night on the roof with the General. You’ve seen him a handful of times. He would politely nod his head or would just stare you down as if his eyes could set you ablaze. You’ve caught him many times staring at you from afar, either when you ate lunch with Zack in the cafeteria, he would be sitting at another table looking unamused staring. Or when you’ve attended Turk and Soldier meetings, he would be there, watching you with every movement. If you stood up, his eyes would follow you across the room, it made you uncomfortable but the more it happened, the more you felt something other than discomfort…. 

You were currently in Zack’s apartment playing some video games.

“Nola are you even listening to me?”

“S-sorry Zack, I am, I just thought about work for a moment.”

“Well don’t! As I was saying during my mission with Angeal in Junon, we were attacked by our Airbuster! It came outta no where!”

“It attacked you. But why? I thought they were programmed to attack enemies; their AI core is the best around. There’s no way it can be altered unless...”

“Unless someone from the inside did so.”

Zack looked at you with an expression he hasn’t given, one that was stern and serious. Reminded you of the handsome General… Wait I'm describing him as handsome now?

“We brought the robot back with us after disengaging it.... the Turks summoned the wreckage for their investigation.” 

“...okay? Why?”

“To see if they can pull any clues off of it to see who may have tampered with the AI core.”

“Well don’t worry, I won’t be authorized to be around it.”

“Well I know that, but I just want you to be careful. I don’t know what floors you work on but please promise me you’ll stay away”

You sat there and stared at him for a few seconds, trying to register what he said. Although you thought his protectiveness was adorable, it internally made you giggle. You were strong and independent; you could handle anything and it’s not like the robot would be active. 

“Please Nola, stay away.” He begged, giving you his classic puppy dog eyes. 

“Okayyyy! I will! I won’t go near it.” Raising an eyebrow at him.

“What’s with the face?”

“Well I just realized your like my protective brother.” 

You smiled at him as you elbowed him in the side.

“Yea yea, I just want to make sure your safe, you’re my friend or “sister” I care about you.”

You both finished playing your video game, you destroying Zack in the process. Although he was soldier and could kick your ass in the field, you could kick his ass in gaming. 

___________________________________________________________________________  
The following week started the same as always. As you made your way to your office, there was already an email waiting for you.

Please come to my office first thing Nola.

-Tseng

You set your purse down, put away your things and walked over to Tseng’s office which was just down the hall. You knocked twice and heard the word “Enter”

“Good morning Nola, thank you for being prompt. As you know we are currently investigating the malfunction of the Airbuster that accompanied 1st Class Soldier Hewley and 2nd Class Solider Fair on their mission to Junon.”

“Yes sir, I’ve been made aware that we may think it was tampered by someone on the inside.” 

“….. Yes well that is classified information but you are correct. The reason I called you to my office is because I need you to organize all the documents that our team has produced so far. The archive room is connected to the room that houses the Airbuster.”

Connected??!! He expected you to be around that crazy death trap?

“Uh Sir, can’t someone just bring me the documents and I’ll organize in my office?”

“As I said Nola, it is classified information.” Probably picking up on your discomfort he reassured you. “You won’t be alone in the room, there will be several other Turks and Scientists there, and let me remind you that the robot is not active right now.” 

You breathed in slightly so that he would not hear you. “Okay, well what time do I need to be there?”

“11am. Dismissed.”

And with that you walked out of his office back to yours and mentally prepped yourself. You gave yourself a classic hype talk, “You can do this!” “Nothing to fear!” “Organize the hell out of those documents!”

But then it hit you, Zack. He told you to stay away, but you can’t argue with Tseng, you could lose your job. Going for the easy way out, you texted Zack just before 11am.

Hey Zack!  
I’m sorry to do this but Tseng gave me a task that has me around the Airbuster, going in a few minutes but don’t worry! Others will be there and the thing is inactive :) See you at lunch tomorrow?

-Nola

Meanwhile….

“What the hell!”

“Zack! What did I tell you about your language.”

“I know Angeal I know, it’s just…. never mind.” Zack replied not paying attention to Genesis sneaking up behind him in the training room, too upset and distraught over Nola’s text.

“Let’s see what has the puppy all rallied up!” Genesis quipped as he glided by, snatching Zack’s phone from his hand.

“Give it back Genesis!”

“Well well well, trouble in paradise?”

“Zack. I have better things to do than wait around while you engage in personal matters.” The silver General snapped.

“Yea yea we get it Sephiroth, your more important, more valuable, more of a hero than the rest of us to get involved in our peasant lives” Genesis snipped to the General, sending him a death glare raging with jealousy. “Zack here is having trouble with his girlfriend.”

Sephiroth cocked his eyebrow knowing they were talking about Nola. 

“She’s not my girlfriend! She’s a close friend that I’m worried about okay? I told her to stay away from the malfunctioning Airbuster but apparently she has to work in the same room.”

“Zack, don’t worry, the Airbuster’s AI core was removed, nothing to fear.” Angeal replied, resting a hand on Zack’s shoulder. “Now let’s get training!”

“Hey! Sephiroth! Where you going?”

“I have a meeting to attend, good luck with the simulation Zack.” The General exited the room hastily, prompting Genesis to eye him cautiously, knowing the mention of Nola was the cause of his quick departure. He'd witness his friend eye a certain female over the past few weeks. Genesis knew something was changing with his silver friend, keeping this in mind for later he readied his rapier and lunged at Zack.


	3. Chapter 3

You were completely blown away by the size of the Airbuster. You knew it was a force to be reckon with, but you didn’t think it would be this terrifying up close!

“Miss Nola?”

You turned to a face a tall broad younger man, wearing his own version of the Turk suit. His was more of a deep shade of royal blue, fitted to his muscular body perfectly, his collar was opened showing his collarbone underneath, and peaking from the side of his hip was a 9mm. 

“Yes?”

“Tseng had mentioned you were coming, please follow me.”

You followed the young man but not before gazing around the room. The Airbuster sat right in the middle of the floor, you could see around, four scientists poking and probing the machine as it laid dormant. Some glanced your way, looking you up and down, probably examining you, while others were probably completely oblivious to your presence. You did manage to see a Turk you recognized, his name was Richardson, he was a new Turk, probably started working here around 7 months. You smiled at him as he glanced your way with a nod of his head. You felt better seeing how everyone else was calm around the killing machine.

“Miss?”

“Opps! Sorry sir.”

“O’Connor, please call me O’Connor, saying sir makes me feel like an uptight boss.” Throwing a smile your way knowing you would enjoy the friendly dig at Tseng.

You entered the room parallel to the other. There were documents laying everywhere. It looked as if someone just threw it all in the room, not caring at all about a filing system.

“If you need anything, I’ll be in the other room.”

“Thank you, O’Connor, I appreciate it.”

And with that you were left to do what your best at, organizing!

You did inventory first, picking apart the papers laying around. Trying to see what categories you could put them in. It was quite easy for you, having a system in place meant keeping on track, and when your on track your mind was more focused. There were a few notes that stood out to you, looking over your shoulder seeing if anyone was watching you, you saw a few words that stuck out, “inside job??” “highly intelligent” “insider knowledge of Soldier Operations” “Possible Solider, higher rank” So it was an inside job then, or at least that’s what someone here is suspecting. But who would want to tamper with the machine and put Zack and Angeal’s lives in danger? Not that they couldn’t handle it. 

As the day progressed, you were three quarters of the way done, quite proud of yourself, you decided to take a break. You pulled up a chair, just shy of the entrance of the other room. Watching the scientists and Turks examine the robot. Quietly whispering to one another, you heard a noise. It sounded like metal rubbing against metal. You ignored it thinking it was just someone tampering with the machine, but then you heard it again. You looked up and saw O’Connor watching intently. You walked over to meet him to let him know if he heard the same thing. As you approached him all alarms started to go off.

The emergency protocol system kicked in, slamming down metal sheets from the ceiling to cover all exits. You heard gasps and screams from several people in the room as they all ran towards the exit. O’Connor yelled something at you but you couldn’t hear over the ringing of the bells. Your gaze fell onto the Airbuster as it started to rev up, you could see the lights igniting all over it’s body. 

Panic riddled your body, you ran to the door, O’Connor grabbing your arm and pulling you with him. 

“Move away from the door!”

He set off several rounds of his gun, but nothing happened. He punched in his security clearance code. 

“ACCESS DENIED ACCESS DENIED” 

“Here let me do mine!” You yelled over the blaring bells and screams of the people. 

“ACCESS DENIED ACCESS DENIED” 

There’s no way, you had high clearance, you worked for Tseng, you had clearance to pretty much everything. Torn from your train of thought you felt water trickle down your face. Rubbing your hand on your cheek you looked down, it wasn’t water, it was red, it was blood! You turned and saw several people ripped apart from the Airbuster. You had to choke back the puke that was riding up your throat.

O’Connor grabbed your arm again, ripping you from the crowds of the remaining people at the door, your feet were dragging behind you as he pushed you into the archive room, slamming your body against the wall in the far corner.

“Don’t move and don’t look! Stay here!”

You nodded, slid to the ground as he bolted back to the room. You could hear more screams, you could hear things being flown around in the room, too scared to look up, you kept your eyes down with your hands covering your ears. Metal was screeching against the ground as the Airbuster was trashing about. 

The sound triggered a memory, you opened your eyes to see yourself in the back of a car, your Mom turned around in her seat to smile at you, Dad looked in the rear view mirror and winked. You tried to talk but nothing came out. You yelled their names but nothing. Tears spilling down your face, you knew what memory this was, you braced yourself as headlights on the opposite side of the road flooded the car. Dad swerved, turning the car upside down as it rolled across the road, creating a metal screech against the pavement. The car stopped, you opened your eyes to see your Mom headfirst through the windshield, your Dad laid lifeless over the steering wheel, the car was engulfed in flames. 

“HELP ME!! SOMEONE HELP ME!”  
“MOM, DAD! PLEASE WAKE UP, PLEASE, WHY DID YOU LEAVE ME, TAKE ME TOO PLEASE” Tears covering your entire face as you wept for them. You couldn’t breathe, you couldn’t move. 

Something flew across the room and landed by your feet, waking you up from your trance. You didn’t dare look up, but when you realized the screams of the people in the room ceased and all you heard were the alarms blaring, you opened your eyes, jumped back and yelped, covering your mouth. You looked down to see O’Connor, torn apart at your feet. You wanted to reach out and touch him, to feel for his heartbeat but you knew there would be none. 

Your whole body was shaking, you were rocking back and forth, you could hear the Airbuster moving around in the other room coming towards you. Knowing this was your last moment, you prayed for a quick death, you prayed that your parents would greet you and you said your goodbyes, this was what you wanted wasn’t it? To be with your family again? Keeping your eyes closed, you heard a swoosh sound fill the room, followed by clunks of metal hitting the floor. Not brave enough to open your eyes you stayed still.

Two large hands grabbed your face and stopped your body from shaking. Bluey-Green dazzling eyes met yours, as you finally opened them. Sephiroth was kneeling on one knee on the ground in front of you. The Masamune was carefully placed beside him. You peered around the room and saw the Airbuster in pieces. The General saved you. 

Glancing back at him, his eyes were roaming your body, looking for injures.

“Are you hurt?”

You shook your head, fearing if you spoke you would break down.

He smiled at you, moving some hair off your face and tucking it behind your ear. Looking at him in this moment, you felt butterflies in your stomach, it could have been that you almost died or the adrenaline was kicking in but you pushed yourself off the floor and flung your arms around his neck.

He was not expecting the gesture as his whole body went stiff, he lost his balance and stumbled behind, taking you with him. Straddling his hips, you kept your face buried in the crook of his neck. He smelt divine, like his office, pine needles and citrus, it took away the smell of blood that your nose was assaulted with. You felt his silky smooth hair within your finger tips, the warmth from his body, and then you felt two strong arms wrap around your waist pulling you closer. Holding you with such strength, you felt the General let out a sigh. The two of you laid there not moving, not talking but basking in this private moment, surrounded by horror and death. 

Knowing that this would look completely inappropriate if someone entered the room, you let go of his neck and slowly pushed yourself away from his body. He locked his arms around you pulling you back down.

“Do not worry, no one is coming yet, please stay.” He whispered near your ear, his lips just touching the curve. 

You snuggled back into his neck, fitting perfectly. You could hear his heartbeat thumping erratically in his chest. Was he nervous? Did you make the Great General nervous?

Feeling a bit uncomfortable, not from the position you were in with the General but where it was happening, you wiggled a bit, catching on to your feelings the General sat himself up, you still straddling his body. He pulled your neck back, bringing your face inches from his own, your noses touching. You pulled away slightly to focus on his eyes. 

“I owe you my life General, thank you so much for saving me, I-I don’t know how I’ll ever repay you.” 

His eyes not leaving yours, not speaking for a few moments. They then trailed down your face to your lips.

“Sephiroth. You can call me Sephiroth and you do not owe me anything.”

With that he brought himself up in the standing position, your legs slipping off his body, but his arms still wrapped around your waist, holding you off the ground. He gently set you down. 

“It’s best to not look when you leave this room…”

“Umm well how am I supposed to walk out then?”

He bent down, scooping his arms under your legs and back, your hands naturally found their way back to his neck as he carried you bridal style.

“Close your eyes.” 

You obediently closed them as he carried you out of the room. You heard gasps and people talking. Knowing you were probably in the hallway now, you expected the General to set you down but instead he held on tighter. His fingers digging into your skin. 

“Nola!!!” 

You recognized Zack’s voice, he came running down the hall full speed, sliding and almost crashing into the General.

“Are you okay?? What happened?? Are you hurt?? Nola???”

“She is fine Zack. I am taking her back to her apartment. Close off the surrounding area and room. Make sure no one steps inside until I am back.”

How did he know where I live?

The General moved around Zack before he could speak again, you reached out and cupped the side of Zack’s face giving him a reassuring smile, he smiled back and whispered. “I’ll call you later.” 

Your hand left his face as the General walked forward. The crowd of people spreading apart to make way for the 1st class soldier. Peering in the distance you could see Tseng standing there, with his arms crossed. You looked up at the General’s face, admiring the contours of his cheek bones, the sharpness of his nose and jaw. His eyebrows furrowed and his gripped tightened as you got closer to Tseng.

“You can put her down General, she’s safe. I’ll take her home.” You recognized the tone he used, his “Listen to me now or else” tone. One that always worked on you but you highly doubted it would work on the General. 

“Not necessary Turk.” He spat. “She should not have been in that room in the first place, you are incapable of keeping her safe.” And with that the General pushed by Tseng to the elevator. Too exhausted to say anything to Tseng, you laid your head on the General’s shoulder and let him take you home


	4. Chapter 4

When you arrived at your apartment Sephiroth carefully unlocked your door with his right hand while still balancing you on his left arm and shoulder. He set you down on your couch, his face just touching yours as he bent over, he went around you’re apartment checking every room and every window, you assumed he was making sure no one was inside, once a General always a General you thought. He made his way to your kitchen where he put the kettle on to make you some tea. You observed him opening your cupboards probably trying to find a cup, before he could open his mouth you pointed to the right cupboard. He picked up a bright pink tea cup, the contradiction of his black glove holding such a dainty item made you giggle. He looked your way with an eyebrow raised, you felt your cheeks warm up, quickly turning your head to look away. Once he gave you your tea, he softly caressed your face and made his way to your kitchen once more. There he picked up your cell phone, pushed in some buttons, you didn’t bother asking what he was doing and he bid you goodbye. When you heard the door lock, you fell into a pillow and slowly drifted to sleep. 

“ACCESS DENIED ACCESS DENIED ACCESS DENIED ACCESS DENIED ACCESS DENIED” Blared in your mind. 

You shot straight up from the couch looking around your apartment, which was completely dark, dashed to the wall to turn on your lights. Wiping your forehead from the beads of sweat that had formed, your body was aching and cold. You tried to shake the thoughts from your head, you calmed yourself by breathing in and out slowly. Deciding to take a bath, you grabbed your phone and walked to the bathroom. 

You made sure to turn up the hot water, as hot as you could take it, added some bath salts and stepped in. Your heart was still beating pretty fast, you could feel yourself losing the hold on your sanity. Thinking if you closed your eyes and relaxed it would help but in doing so you pictured O’Connor’s body laying in front of you, his eyes opened, blood trickling down his face. You opened yours. Not being able to relive the moment again, you picked up your phone from the ground and read your messages.

5 missed calls from Zack and 4 text messages

Nola!! I asked Sephiroth how you were doing but he gave me one word answers, I know your probably resting but please call me when you can. Did you want me to bring you anything? Dinner? Snacks? Triple patty cheeseburgers?? A hug :)  
-Zack

Hey gurl, heard what happened, glad you made it out safe! Not a surprise though you are part of the Turk family! Rude sends best. I may stop by and see how my favorite chick is hangin.   
-Reno 

Nola. Under theses circumstances I have enlisted a mandatory leave until you have recovered. Please keep me posted on your progress. I will reach out soon to file an official report on this incident.  
-Tseng

Nola, I have inputted my number in your phone. Please do not hesitate to call me, does not matter the time of day. I will be back later.  
-Sephiroth

So that’s what he was doing on my phone earlier. You decided to text Zack back, you really didn’t feel like talking on the phone.

Hey Zack, I’ve been better, but I can’t really complain especially with all the lives we lost today… Not hungry but I could go for that hug later! I have something to tell you as well, it’s about what I saw but it’s best to say in person. Stop by tomorrow when you can.  
-Nola

With that you dropped your phone to the ground and slid yourself under the water in the tub. The hot water felt amazing on your joints. After relaxing, you got dressed and made your way to the bed. Pulling the covers over your body, you tried to sleep. Every time you closed your eyes you kept picturing O’Connor. You could still smell blood when you breathed in. You lay awake watching the time on your clock. 9pm-11:12pm-1:36am-3:33am-6:19am-8:01am-9:22am. Shrugging off the covers and barely able to keep yourself upright, you needed coffee. 

Heading to the kitchen you made yourself a pot, resting your head on your hands propped up on the counter, you watched each drip of coffee fill the pot.

**Drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, knock, drip, knock, drip, drip, KNOCK!**  
Startled you shook your head and glanced at the door, KNOCK KNOCK. You huffed your way over and swung it open only to be pushed back, picked up and lifted off the ground.

“Zack?”

“Nola, I’m so happy your alright. I was so worried about you.” He dropped you down. Moving both his hands to either side of your face. His eyes roamed around, darting from one side to the next. He dropped his hands but his eyes were still fixed on your body.

“Zack, I’m okay, no cuts or anything.” You smiled at him. “Do you want some coffee? You look terrible”

“I’ve been up all night with Sephiroth and Tseng. We’ve been gathering and cleaning up the room. Nola, I can’t believe nothing happened to you, I saw the bodies, the blood! Luckily the General was there eh?” 

“I know, I’m still trying to wrap my head around it.”

“Which part? The almost death? Or the General carrying you like a bride?” He mischievously smiled at you. 

“Zack! This isn’t the time.” You scolded him. But his comment did make you reminisce that moment. How strong he felt, it was like being held by a statue, from what your hands could feel he was all muscle. You could still picture his beautiful dark eyelashes when they batted at you as he was looking at your face. “Please sit down, I have something to tell you.”

As you both sat down in the living room, both equally looking like death, holding your coffees. You began to tell Zack about what happened, and the notes you saw.

“Really? I don’t really know anyone who would want to hurt us. I mean we have enemies all over but no one from inside. Are you sure you saw it correctly? The last thing we need is for the Turks to start accusing a Solider, it may blow up into something bigger. Maybe it was a Turk who tampered with it.”

A bit confused at Zack’s defensive attitude you spoke. “I don’t know Zack, but I know Tseng will be over to take my report, should I tell him? I could go back and show him the notes.”

“Mmmmm, I would say yes but everything was destroyed in that room. Not only that, everything was covered in…..” He trailed off. 

“Blood?”

“Yea…. Nola are you sure your okay? I can stay here if you like? I don’t mind sleeping on your couch.”

You paused, staring at Zack with a blank expression, wondering if you should tell him of your past. I mean you haven’t known Zack for long but something about his demeanor made you trust him unconditionally. You tried not to tell people about your problems, fearing they would judge you and treat you like a feather but you had no strength to keep it from him anymore. “Zack, there’s something you should know about me and my family. As you know my parents are dead. I told you what happened in their car crash. When I was younger, and even now, I suffer from anxiety attacks and depression. I sometimes have episodes that are triggered by moments. It can be a small moment but nonetheless it still happens. I’ve been good but….I’m afraid, especially now, I just don’t know what to do.” 

He didn’t speak right away, I think he was choosing his words carefully. “Nola, afraid of what? How can I help you?”

A sigh of relief left your lips. “Just afraid that I won’t be able to snap out of it. Every time I close my eyes I picture O’Connor’s body. I didn’t sleep at all last night.”

“I’m staying here with you. I won’t take no for an answer. I have to go back to work and help with the investigation but after that I’ll grab my stuff and stay with you. I know you can take care of yourself Nola, I do, I just want to be a good friend.” 

Zack pulled you into his body. Squeezing your tiny form in his arms. He rested his chin on top of your head.

“Thanks Zack.” You squeezed him back.

Broken out of your moment, you heard a few knocks on your front door. Zack let you go and strolled to open it. The General stood magnificent as always at your front entrance. 

“General, what are you doing here?”

Sephiroth peered around Zack’s body scanning the room. “What are you doing here Zack? I thought you were grabbing breakfast.”

“I am, I just stopped to see Nola. Nola I’ll be back later! Text me if you need anything!” Zack yelled as he brushed past the General.

The General stood in your doorway, not saying anything, you couldn’t read the expression on his face as you walked up to greet him. He almost looked puzzled as to why Zack was here. 

“Why will Zack be back later?” the General questioned you.

“He’s going to be staying with me for a few nights.”

Sephiroth’s eyes widened but he quickly regained his composure as he turned his body to leave.

“Wait!” You grabbed his arm, he turned his body and looked down at you.

He probably got no rest as well but somehow he looked better than you and Zack combined. Not a hair on his beautiful head was out of place, he still smelt like leather and citrus. You gazed up into his eyes, admiring how they changed from different shades of blue and green in the lights. His pink lips were plump and just begging to be kissed. You wanted to reach up and touch his face, you wanted to jump on him like you did in the archive room. Instead you let go of his arm and said “Sorry, it’s not like that… whatever your thinking about Zack. He’s just a close friend who’s worried about me.”

The General who looked at his arm where your hand rested just seconds before, met your gaze and gently pushed some of your bedhead hairs behind your ear. He softly smiled at you, igniting a fire in your stomach, he took a step closer and gathered your face within his hands. You smiled back.

“I should be going back now, I only came to check on you. I’m glad your safe.” He let go of your face, missing his warm touch already. “If I wasn’t there, you would have been--.” He cut himself off turned his back and strolled down the hallway.

“Oh gods, I need more coffee to handle this shit.” You closed the door and sat back down.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________  
In the afternoon Tseng stopped by. He was more distant that his usual self. Usually he relaxes when it’s just the two of you but when you discussed the part of the General, he acted as if he was in the middle of an interrogation. He took down your side of the story, you left out the pieces regarding what you saw on the notes. Once you were all done, he came to sit on the couch beside you.

“How are you doing Nola…. With everything? Have you had any….moments?” 

“I’m not going to lie Tseng, I’m still very upset but thank you for letting me take some time off.”

“Of course.” He looked at you and softly smiled. He reached out and let his hand rest on top of yours on your thigh. “If you need anything, please reach out to me, I know how to take care of you more than anyone.” Somehow you felt the last part was directed at the General. Knowing how Tseng demanded you to be put down yesterday from the General’s arms. He stood up, tapped your chin with his finger and dismissed himself.

To distract yourself from the interrogation, you got together your cleaning supplies and started to dust and mop around your apartment. You had one of the nicer apartments, decorated by yourself. The walls were a light soft blue with accents of light green and white. Your living room sectional was a navy blue, tossed with dark green pillows. You didn’t like to have a lot of clutter, a few family pictures, a few pictures of you and Tseng and a new photo of you and Zack at the burger joint you went to when you first met. Laughing to yourself at the memory of Zack reaching out his arm with his camera, pushing you into his body to get you both in the frame. You were very surprised to hear Zack didn’t have a girlfriend, he was very handsome, strong, passionate and caring, any girl would be lucky to have him. 

Your mind began to drift as you were cleaning the bathroom. You thought about how stern Tseng was today, I mean he acted like you were in trouble or something. What was more puzzling was how his emotions would change so quickly, first it was the interrogation next it was soft touches on my hand. He wasn’t like this before so why now? Unless it was because of the General? It’s not as if your in some sort of relationship, the General was just doing what anyone else would. Give you a handkerchief to clean yourself up, saving you from murderous robots, carrying you like a bride, holding you….brushing hair off your face…..worrying about you…. Oh man this was definitely not a normal friend thing to do. But the General was…well the Great General Sephiroth!

He could have any girl he wanted. He was so much more sophisticated than you. Plus when would he even have time to be around to start a relationship with you. No it’s not possible, he’s just socially awkward, I’m sure that’s the reason for him acting this way to you… right? Shaking your head you pushed those thoughts away and continued to clean into the night.

You spent the rest of your recovery days sleeping and eating. Talking with Zack who stayed the entire time. He did try to pry some information regarding the Great General but you kept those private moments to yourself, you didn’t even tell Tseng about your intimate moment with the General. Knowing how he would probably get more upset. Tomorrow was now Monday and you were going back to work. Who knows? Maybe you’ll run into Sephiroth? Maybe he’ll sweep you off your feet again? Or push you against a wall, holding you there while his lips----NOPE! You had to sleep!


	5. Chapter 5

Your heels made clipping noises as you walked down the hallway to your office. Unsure of how today will go, being your first day back. You had a couple of weeks to relax and gather yourself. With Zack being there the entire time other than when he had to leave for missions or train, your anxiety attacks weren’t as often. You slept great in fact! You never did build up enough courage to call or text Sephiroth, didn’t want to seem like a bother to him. But now, knowing how this week you’ll be alone, you found yourself biting the skin around your nails anxiously. Entering your office you saw you had no missed calls or emails, you figured Tseng took care of it for you, not trusting Reno and Rude to be confident in doing your job. There was a pile of paperwork waiting for you, documents that had to be archived. The main thing you wanted to accomplish today was finding out what Tseng had achieved so far from his investigation, Zack wasn’t able to tell you much as most was too confidential for his ears. 

You grabbed the paperwork and headed to the archive room. The darkness of the room mirrored your current state, dark and gloomy. As you were putting away the documents you heard a noise. Glancing around you couldn’t see anything or anyone, but you felt a presence. Continuing your work you heard it again, this time it sounded a lot closer. Panic was slowly creeping up your body, your heart was beating fast and your breathing ceased. You stood still, waiting for the unknown sound to occur again. Unable to take the suspense anymore and unsure of who or what was around, you bolted for the door. Just as your hand touched the door knob a strong arm grabbed yours and twirled you around. Already cocking your fist for a punch you were met with the General. 

He looked slightly amused as he gestured to your clenched fist. Letting go of your arm, you raised your voice at him “I could have punched you! Why are you here? Are you trying to scare me! What are you doing?! Are you nuts creeping around here!”

He stepped back and shook his head, his silver hair flowing from one side to the next. He looked absolutely menacing in this room, with there being no natural light, the dark walls bounced off his black leather attire. The only thing that was bright were his mako eyes, pale skin and silver hair. At first you wanted to punch him for scaring you but looking at him now in this moment you wanted to embrace him. Why are you feeling this way towards this man? Just because he saved you, you think he has some sort of attachment to you? This man was a General, he commanded armies, he would have to have some sort of honor to protect others, just like he protected you. Doesn’t mean he likes you. 

“I did not intend to scare you, I knew you were back at work and since you were not in your office, the archive room was my next destination. Although….. I will not do it again knowing you could have “punched” me.” An adorable small smile formed his lips in a playful mocking manner.

Seeing him this way made you so happy, you got to see him in a different light, one that even his closest friends didn’t see. You couldn’t help but laugh at his statement. As if your punch could do harm to him, if anything you would just hurt yourself. “Well how did you know I was back today? Asking around about me hmmm?” Trying to mock him back. 

His eyes widened as if he been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. “No, I-I heard from Zack.” 

Oh my gosh did I make him stutter?? 

“Ahhh I see, well I’m not surprised, Zack was a great companion while I was off. Get this, he even cooked for me! Although it was burnt it was the thought that count!”

“…I could have cooked for you.” He shyly said. 

A sly smile formed your lips. “Oh? Does the Great General Sephiroth know how to cook?”

“I do have other skills than fighting.” He straighten his back, cracking in the process.

“Well I’m sorry if I knew that I would have called.” You said with a giggle. 

He took a step forward, leaning slightly as his head dipped towards your ear. There’s that heavenly scent of his again. “My offer still stands whenever you want.” He backed his head back enough for his eyes to level with yours. You stared at each other for what felt like an eternity. His piercing mako eyes bored into yours, you kept eye contact, fearing you would miss the slightest slip of emotion. His eyes lowered to your lips and then your neck. You tilted your head to the side, forcing him to avert his eyes up again. 

“I’ll keep that in mind General.”

“Sephiroth. Please Nola call me Sephiroth.”

He stepped to the side around you and left the room, you felt his hair skim across your arm as he left, his scent trailing behind him. So far this was a good day back! You could have asked him about the investigation, him being the top 1st class solider but you didn’t want to ruin the moment you were having to talk about something so depressing. You’ll just have to stick to your original plan and talk to Tseng. 

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

With the better half of the day gone, feeling a small victory of being caught up, you walked down the hall to speak to Tseng. A touch of silver caught your eye as it turned the corner, was that Sephiroth? Is he watching me or something? Ignoring the utter crazy idea, you kept walking. 

Tseng practically jumped from his chair as you entered his office.

“Nola.” He said in a cheerful tone….not like him at all.

Eyeing him worriedly. “Hey sir, I’m back.” You replied with a smile.

“I know, I was expecting you to come by first thing.”

“I was but I decided to catch up on work first.”

You both stood there staring at each other. Much like the staring contest you had with the silver General, this one was different. Tseng was acting differently today, he wasn’t giving off his usual boss attitude. His eyes seemed to glisten as he watched you come in, his body relaxed and even his lips were forming a smile. This was completely different to how he acted in your apartment. 

“Sir, I wanted to know if you found anything about the Airbuster.”

“Mmmm, unfortunately nothing was found. Most of it was damaged from the attack…..and from General Sephiroth destroying the robot.”

“Oh. I just don’t understand how that’s the case, I mean people were killed, I was almost killed!” You raised your voice, something you never did with Tseng.

He glided around his desk to stand with you, he extended his arms and laid his hands on either side of your forearms. “Nola, I can promise you we will find something. It just takes time. But please do not worry much, I will do everything in my power to find the truth.” He dropped his arms but not before slowly sliding them down, dragging across your blouse to your hands. Your body producing goosebumps. Feeling uncomfortable with the sudden change in his behaviour again. You stepped back.

“Sorry Sir, I didn’t mean to yell at you, that was unprofessional. I appreciate you giving me time off and for your patience. Please let me know if anything pops up. I should get back to work though, I’ll talk to you later Sir.” 

You opened his door and shut it behind you. Walking with your head down, you blindly made it back to your office, ignoring the fact that the General was walking towards you. You stepped into your office and closed the door. Locking it, you slid to the ground and began to cry.

“I should have told Tseng about what I saw on the reports. This is my fault. People died and now I’ve ruined the best chance at catching who did this.” Your whole body was shaking, tears spilling down the side of your face, your breathing became laboured. You internally told yourself not to breakdown at work, you just got back, if someone saw you, you would definitely be put back on leave. And with Zack not staying over, you would be alone…with yourself…with your darkness. 

Wiping your tears off your face you stood up, unlocked the door and sat back in your chair, glancing up you felt that feeling again, that presence you felt this morning. Staring at the door, waiting for someone to knock, nothing came. Insisting it was just you being tired you went about your day before heading home. 

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

1:18am.

You tossed and turned all night. Thinking if you went to bed at 10pm, it would force you to sleep and get more hours in before work, it seemed to have done the opposite. You kept worrying about the investigation, and how your withholding information. You sat up and turned on the light. Your room was eerily quiet now with Zack’s snoring not being present. 

**Tap**

“What was that?” You straighten up to listen, the sound came again but from your living room. You grabbed your sweater and walked out. Peering around you couldn’t see anything.

**Tap**

Your eyes locked on the door as the sound was coming from it. Was someone seriously knocking on my door at this time, you said to yourself.

Slowly walking to the door like a ninja, you put your ear to it.

A deep voice that you knew all too well spoke.

“Nola, I can hear you on the other side, open up it’s me.”

You opened the door and almost passed out. There stood the General in normal clothes! You didn’t think he owned any! He wore dark fitted jeans that hugged his legs, with a V neck maroon sweater, just opened enough to show his well defined chest. His hair was pulled up into a half ponytail. Looking absolutely gorgeous, you felt butterflies engulf your entire body. Your jaw dropped slightly at the sight, recovering before drool would drip down. “Sephiroth, what are you doing here at this time?”

He took a step back and held out his hand, with no hesitation, you grabbed your keys and gently placed your hand in his, noticing he wasn’t wearing any gloves. His touch was so strong as his fingers covered your entire hand, it was surprisingly hot to touch. He pulled you along, following his every step, not even questioning him at all. You felt safe with him so why bother asking. By the time you stopped admiring the General, you found yourself at a door. Looking up, you knew where you were. The door to the roof, to your safe spot.

You squeezed his hand and looked up at his dazzling eyes. “How did-“

He cut you off. “I thought you would enjoy coming here, I felt you were…distressed early.”

That’s when it hit you, the presence you felt was his, he was at your office door while you were crying. Holding back more tears now you softly said Thank you. 

You walked outside onto the roof. He let go of your hand as you sat down on the ground, he joined you a second later, the two of you laid on the ground peering up at the night sky, not speaking, just enjoying each other’s company. This was exactly what you needed. 

“I hope you do not mind me staying here with you, I know this is your territory.”

Smiling at him as you turned your head to the right to face him. “It’s alright, I really did need this. So, thank you again. Being up here calms me, and having you next to me, makes me feel protected.” Blushing slightly. 

He turned his head to look at you, surprised by your small confession. He gave you one of his beautiful smiles before reaching over and grabbing your hand. “I care for you Nola. I am not accustomed to such kindness, but I am honoured you feel protected by me.” After a while of staring at the midnight sky he spoke again.

“I should take you home so you can properly rest.” You nodded and stood up, slightly disappointed that the night was ending. Noticing your expression, he dipped down and picked you up like before, carrying you like a bride, like his bride. Your hands once again found their way around his neck. The softness of his sweater mixed with the softness of his hair triggered something inside. Here was this man, a man who commanded an entire army, killed thousands, feared by many (including most at Shinra) and yet he gently held you like a glass rose. He showed emotions that he would never show anyone else. He somehow knew what you wanted and it seemed he took pride in doing so. Maybe you were wrong about him, maybe your feelings for him were being reciprocated. Zack has told you many stories about the General, about his battles, his bloodlust. But being here in his arms, you felt this was a different person entirely. Was everything just a façade? If it was, was this part of it? 

Making his way back to your home, he carried you with ease. His boots made small thumping noises against the floor. When you reached your apartment, he bent down and set your feet to the floor. You turned your back to put your key in the door, you could almost feel his eyes wandering on your turned body. With a sigh you softly spoke fearing someone might hear the two of you.

“Thank you again, you don’t know how much this meant to me. And I mean for everything. You’ve somehow been there when I needed you the most. I really don’t know how I’ll ever repay you.”

He took a small step forward and looked down at you.

“I’m sure we can come up with something.” He winked.

Before you could even register what happened, he was already half way down the hall entering the elevator. 

He actually winked at me! What does this mean?? People don’t just wink at you for no reason. I think he was flirting! With me! How am I supposed to sleep now??

You stepped into your apartment and made your way to your bedroom, hoping that this moment would ease your mind... and with luck it did. You fell asleep instantly. Dreaming of the handsome General.


	6. Chapter 6

The ocean’s waves came crashing up on the steep cliff, covering the black jagged rocks that covered the hillside. With each heartbeat of the ocean, as if it were breathing, water splashed on the rocks in front of a secluded cave. A young man carefully stepped on the edge where the cliff met water. Cautiously avoiding the pull of the water not to be swept out. He made it to the entrance of the cave. The young man removed his black trench coat, revealing blue cargo pants, a matching blue long sleeved shirt, black army boots, brown straps that framed his upper body and attached to his back was a dazzling silver sword embedded with many materia. Each fabric clung to his taunt body, and with a flick of his wrist each lantern was lite up with fire. A fire was started in the middle of the room.

A small cot was beside the fire, for whoever slept there would be warmed. The young man walked further in, unsheathing his sword, placing it on a hook in the wall, he admired his weapons. The wall was covered in guns of many types, daggers sharp as ever, chains, ropes and many swords. His blood was boiling with anger as he paced back and forth in front of the fire. Mumbling to himself with clenched fists so tight a normal person would start to bleed, but not for this man. He removed his gloves, throwing them on the ground, as he continued to pace. Feeling the need to crack someone’s neck he released a pent-up scream.

“AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!” 

Lunging his fist to the cave wall, he continued to punch it with his bare hands. Swearing in between each thrust. The wall began to crumble, a small rock pile began to form at his boots. With one last lash, the rock wall splinter, creating a crack well above the young man’s head. He stopped looked up as his eyes lite up the cave roof. Glancing down at his hands, bloodied with cuts opening his knuckles, peeling back the skin that was shredded from the rocks. He grunted as the skin continued to peel to his wrist.

He walked over to the table that was against the far side of the wall, laid his hands against it, releasing a forced breath from his nose. He walked back to his sword, touched it and whispered. A green stream wrapped his body, his skin on his hands were soon amended and healed. Walking back to the table, it was covered in maps, notes, scribbles and pictures. He peered up at the wall to his right, admiring his work.

Grinning evilly, he spoke to himself. “So I see I’m going to have to go harder now. No matter, I wasn’t even trying.” He smiled at the newspaper clipping that was stuck to the wall, it featured the elite trio. His finger was placed on Angeal, his other hand curled into a fist, knowing his failure of a plan. He knew the failure was not completely a loss. It revealed a weakness. The gods must have blessed him for the Airbuster continued to malfunction and kill a few at Shinra. Although none were his target, it did leave one female alive, one that has caught the attention of a certain General.

He picked up a photo, one that was taken outside at night. It showed the female, with light brown hair, wearing sweats that hugged her delicious body. The young man licked his lips. She was on the roof, alone….well not for long. In the bottom left corner of the frame were specks of silver hair. Seeing this he slammed the photo down on the table, rattling the entire cave. His anger returning so quickly, he paced again.

Stopping at his cot, he sat down with a thud. He stared at the wall for hours. Not speaking, not moving, not even blinking. One would think he fell asleep with his eyes open but no, he was daydreaming, smiling to himself as this brought back a memory. Standing up urgently, he made his way back to the table. Picking up the clipping again of the elite trio, this time his eyes focused on a red clad man. He could always just burn the theatre to the ground. That would surely destroy his heart. But no, that wouldn’t work. He knew something more…dramatic needed to be done, would fit the personality of his next victim.

He already had a plan, one that wouldn’t fail this time. He walked back over to his cot, laying down on his back, with another flick of his wrist, the lights went out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello Friends! Sorry for the short chapter, had to do a little background story, but next chapters will be longer! :)


	7. Chapter 7

You stood in front of your bathroom mirror, your eyes were puffy and a bit blood shot. You tried to apply some make up to hide the evidence of little sleep. You found yourself constantly sighing dramatically while thinking about everything that has happened. No one has given you any form of update making you feel incredibly nervous. Your mind raced as it went through that dreadful day over and over again. Seeing the notes, hearing the metal screeching noise, O’Connor…. Sure, you could just ask Sephiroth if he knows anything, but you didn’t want him to use his status. 

As you made your way from the bathroom to the living room, you slumped down on your couch, leg busy tapping away. As each night passed you got more and more anxious, you got into the habit of triple checking all locks on all doors and windows, even peering underneath your bed and closets as if some huge robotic monster would be there. You just couldn’t comprehend what had happened, as if it were all just a nightmare. You don’t know how the Turks put up with this, constantly putting themselves in danger and yet they came to work, smile on their faces, sleeping soundly at night, but maybe they were used to it, put up some sort of defense mechanism against all the horrors they’ve seen and been through. 

You did manage not to see O’Connor’s body every time you closed your eyes, but your heart still hurt for what had happened. You didn’t have many tears left in you to cry. You felt guilty for being the only survivor, what is it worth it? Wouldn’t it have been easier if you died too? How many times do you have to pick up the pieces and put yourself together? 

Tseng was no help at all. He was still acting very different towards you, still being very nice and touchy feely. Not sure if it was because of what happened to you or something else. Whenever you did ask him for an update, he would only reassure you everything was under control. But today you had enough, going on your 5th day of barely any sleep, you knew you had to be more assertive towards him. Today you would conjure up all the energy you had left to confront him.

Grabbing your coffee and bagel, you headed out the door for work. When you got to your office you drew up an email to Tseng, asking to meet with him today. He replied almost instantly.

Certainly, Nola, Let’s meet for lunch today at 1pm. I’ll stop by your office before then.  
-Tseng

And just like clockwork, 12:45pm came by with a knock at your door. Your whole morning was just a blur, didn’t manage to touch your work at all, your coffee and bagel sat untouched on your desk. You got up from your chair, straighten your pants, quickly reapplied some cover up to the bags under your eyes and dragged your feet to answer the door. There stood Tseng, on time as always, his suit clean pressed and a small smile on his face.

“Ready to go?”

“Yes, let’s go.” You replied, hoping he wouldn’t pick up on your nervousness. 

You both continued to walk to the elevator, Tseng pushing the button and with a wave of his hand, gesturing you to enter first. As the car landed on the ground floor, the doors opened to reveal a slightly agitated General. Staring directly at Tseng with furrowed eyebrows, Tseng equally sending glares back. No one spoke for a few seconds. It made you feel like they were about to duel…. Deciding to be the adult you spoke up.

“Good afternoon Sir, I hope your having a good day so far.”

Thinking this would break the intense eye contact, it did not. Sephiroth kept his eyes on Tseng as he spoke.

“It was.” His voice laced with venom. 

“Excuse us General.” Tseng replied as he put his hand on your lower back, pushing you through the doors. “We have a lunch to attend, good day.” 

You tried to say goodbye, but Tseng was using more force than necessary to push you through the lobby. You didn’t understand what had just happened, every time they were around one another, they acted like enemies, but it wasn’t your problem, you had bigger things to deal with.   
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

You arrived at a swanky restaurant on the upper plate. You recognized this place; it was a restaurant you came to for Rude’s birthday bash. The waitresses wore elegant black dresses, the waiters wore black sleek suits. There were small tables around the floor with several booths lining the walls. Everything was immaculate, the white marble floors spotless as they reflected your body, the walls were shaded in a deep dark red. It was a very posh place to eat, us Turks always had our own table reserved. As we sat down, across from one another, Tseng ordered some wine for us to drink. You stuck with a salad and Tseng with some rice dish, you tried to build up the nerve to ask him about the investigation.

Clenching your hands together underneath the table, you finally took in a deep breath. “Uhhh Tseng, I know I’ve asked you several times on the investigation, but I really do need to know if there are any updates.” Your eyes pleaded with him to give you some sort of answer.

“I’m glad we could sit down and talk about this. Unfortunately, nothing has come into place regarding what happened. We tried to examine the Airbuster but with it being in such bad shape, nothing was salvageable. The reports from several others conclude it was just a fluke that the Airbuster turned on soldiers Angeal and Zack. With what happened to you and the others seems to just be continuation of that. I know it’s not what you want to hear Nola, but there isn’t much to do now.” 

Deciding it was best to come clean you addressed him. “…. there’s something I need to tell you that I didn’t before.” Your voice cracked and your hands trembled. 

He put his fork down, squinting his eyes waiting for you to continue.

“I saw some notes when I was organizing the documents that day. It read that someone or maybe more than just one person wrote that it could be an inside job and possibly someone who knows a lot about soldier. And I know before you scold me, I should have told you, but when I found out that the notes were damaged, I just figured there was no point. Plus, I didn’t want to start accusing solider and putting a rift between us and them. But now, hearing from you, I feel as if I’ve made a mistake. Maybe this information can help?”

He picked up his fork and began eating. Scrunching your eyebrows together, you had to think for a moment, did you even speak just now? Or are you imagining it? Did this conversation happen in your head?

“Tseng? Did you hear what I said?” You questioned him timidly. 

“I did Nola, but unfortunately with no evidence to back up your claim it would just be your word. I think with what happened that day, the stress and turmoil you have gone through may have altered what you remembered. Nothing was found. No notes, no evidence of tampering, nothing.” 

Your face instantly fell, your stomach began to twist and turn. Holding in your tears the best you could. “But Tseng-“

He huffed loudly. “Nola. The case has been officially closed by upper management. It would have not mattered if you told this before. There is no proof to your claim. And besides that, if what you say is correct then it is not Turk business. It has to do with soldier. So please drop it Nola. There is nothing more to discuss on this matter.”

You were completely shocked at his dismissive behaviour. Not only that but how can a case be closed when people that died are getting no justice! Their families will never see them again nor will they truly understand why it happened.

The rest of the lunch was mostly silence. Tseng picking up on your disappointed, he quickly ate and paid the bill, departing back to the office with you.  
_________________________________________________________________________________________________

Your shock for what you heard was still not registering in your head. It didn’t make any sense. Why would they close the case, and why did Tseng seem like he didn’t care. Him hearing about what you saw made him even more dismissive of the entire situation. If it was a solider than it should still matter….. I should still matter. You haven’t been in this kind of situation before, so maybe Shinra didn’t put in effort when it came to it’s lower level employees.

This troubled you a lot. And normally you would listen to your boss, but you felt the need to do something. Something out of your comfort zone. As if you were blessed with a wave of encouragement, you pushed your own feelings, doubts, and worries aside. If Tseng wasn’t going to help, then you would help yourself. It was the right thing to do for you…... and for O’Connor. 

Once you made it back home, you spent the majority of the next few nights after work gaining all information you could from the archives. While keeping a low profile, you ignored Zack’s messages, you couldn’t afford any distractions. You were able to grab a lot of reports to take copies of to take home. Some were from Tseng, taking information from yourself, the rest came from Angeal and Zack’s involvement. But nothing seemed to stand out. Instead you needed to see the surveillance tapes from that day. You distinctly remember hearing a sound from the robot, so maybe that could lead somewhere.

One day at work you logged into your computer to pull the tapes, having done this multiple times in the past. A red message popped up.

UNAUTHORIZED SECURITY CLEARANCE

“What?? But I always have clearance to tapes. What the hell is going on now…” Sighing at yet another road block. 

Trying your credentials one more time, the same message popped up. Someone had to have bumped up the clearance for this. Which meant only certain higher management positions could access, including Tseng….

You were just about to formulate your next move when your office door swung open, smashing against the wall, with a very grumpy Zack barging in with his arms crossed over his chest. 

“So, I have to hunt you down in order to finally get through!”

You stood up and raised your hands in a calm manner. “Zack, I was going to message you back, but I’ve been busy.” It wasn’t a complete lie, you did think about messaging him back. 

“Yea busy ignoring me! You could have at least messaged me back once! It doesn’t take much effort to do so.” His voice was stern. 

“Sorry… But I have been really busy and I’m sure you know that the case is closed.”

“Yes, I’ve been told.”

“Well, I’ve been doing some work on the side of my own. Trying to come up with some sort of information. I just don’t think the case is being handled the way it should be. Just because some lower level people died, doesn’t give any right for upper management to close it down, with no form of resolution.” 

“I understand what your saying. And it’s unfortunate with what happened to you, but I also know Shinra more than you. It’s not just because lower level people are involved. There’s many times when second and third class soldiers die and their families only get a letter stating their death, no details whatsoever. It’s all political here, once a case is closed, its damn near impossible to have it reopened. I’m more concerned right now about you, when you didn’t message me back….. I thought something may have happened.” 

Seeing the hurt on Zack’s face really made feel guilty for how you ignored him. He helped you so much, he made you laugh when you were sad, listened to whatever you said and now you were repaying him by ignoring him. You told him about yourself and probably not knowing how to deal with it, he goes to the worst-case scenario for you. This wasn’t what you wanted to happen, you just needed time apart. 

“Zack I’m so sorry. Your right. I have become really involved, and I know I should drop it but I’m not going to. This is something I need to do. BUT since I have been such a bad friend, lets hang out soon?” Giving him your best pouty face.

“How about tonight? Also, there’s only one correct answer for this.” He stood straight looking already victorious. 

“Sure” Smiling at him, and him finally smiling back. “What did you wanna do?”

“Well a couple of my friends and I are going to a bar tonight for a few drinks. And now your coming with.” His grin widened. 

“…..Fine, what time?”

“8pm. I’ll stop by your apartment and we can go together.”

“Okay I’ll see you later. And Zack, next time your upset with me, please reframe from using your solider strength to open my door, there’s now a hole in the wall.”

Zack peered behind the door to the indent in the wall. “Opps….I’ll fix that..”  
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

As 8pm rolled by, you were ready to go. You decided to wear a dark jean mini skirt with a dark grey skin-tight top that hugged your body so. Opting for flats since you planned on drinking and not wanting to fall over later. Zack arrived just on time.

He whistled at you when you open the door revealing your outfit.

“Hot damn Nola! Do you want me to fight off the guys tonight!”

Laughing at his reaction. “Well thanks Zack, your not so bad yourself.”

Zack wore dark jeans with a green button-down shirt, and you must say he was looking rather appealing tonight. Especially with a few buttons undone revealing his chest. My Gods, are all soldiers just so damn dashing and handsome? Is it some sort of requirement? 

You both walked to the bar, not far from your apartment. He told you it would just be you, him, Cloud and another 3rd class solider named Landin. Happy that it wasn’t going to be a huge group of people joining. You both joined the table where the other two were seated. Zack introduced everyone and got to ordering drinks for us all. 

“So, Zack, this is the infamous Nola we have nonstop heard about? I was beginning to think she didn’t exist.” Landin spoke.

“Okay first off, I don’t nonstop talk about her, its only been a few times.”

“No please Landin, tell me everything that Zack has said about me.” Smiling at Zack, trying to get his feathers all ruffled.

You could tell right from the start that Cloud was a timid guy. He looked like an adorable smaller blonde version of Zack. And Landin was more of a talkative guy, he winked at the waitress when she came by with our drinks, he complimented you several times, and told stories of all he’s done in his life so far.

As the night carried on, you were all a few drinks in, obviously the guys had more since they weren’t a light weight like yourself. Everything was going great, you all were cracking jokes, even Cloud (being as shy as he was) started to chime in. You did notice though that Landin was inching closer and closer to you. You knew Zack noticed as well for every time Landin moved closer Zack moved further down the curve bench, pulling your hand with him. 

Closer to the end of the evening, you decided it would be a good time to wrap it up. As Zack moved off the bench, you slid over to exit with him when Landin grabbed your arm rather roughly.

“Why not come back to my place for a few more drinks?” He slurred.

“Uhh dude, knock it off, you’ve had too much to drink.” Zack quickly snipped as he got into defensive mode. 

“I think she can answer for herself, dude. Well Nola?” Landin looked at you with his eyes glazed over. You knew he clearly had too much to drink. 

You stared at Landin with widened eyes and ripped your arm out of his grasp. “No thank you, but thanks for a fun night out.”

As you turned away to continue leaving the bench, he grabbed your arm once more, this time prompting Zack to start to take action. But before he could come to the rescue a voice spoke, quieting the entire establishment. All music ceased, all chattered stopped and all eyes were on you. 

“I believe she said no thanks soldier.”

You all turned to see Sephiroth standing beside Zack, towering over the table, wearing his illustrious elite uniform, looking all powerful and almighty. Behind him you could see Genesis and Angeal onlooking, they both looked quite nervous. Your heart skipped a beat at the sight. Could he be anymore handsome… 

“S-S-Sir!” Landin and Cloud stood attention and saluted the General. 

You were able to finally leave the bench, glancing back at Landin who pretty much sobered up, your eyes trailed over to Cloud as he looked the same way. I think the General scared them both, especially Landin with how Sephiroth’s eyes haven’t moved from his death glare. He looked your way, his mako slit eyes resembling disappointment. A pang hit your chest when you met his glare, you felt almost…. guilty? Internally shaking your head, you knew nothing happened tonight, so why feel this way?

As you finally got to your feet, the General tore his eyes away from you, never blinking, back to the boy who bowed his head, not wanting to make eye contact with the fearful General in front of him. 

“Please come to my office first thing tomorrow morning at 7am.” He addressed Landin. 

Landin barely got out a yes sir, before turning his face away.

“Now now Sephiroth no need to get territorial. Everyone is just having a fun night out, something you should do more often” Genesis snickered in the back. Both him and Angeal gave you a head nod, you motioning back the same. 

Once again, caught up in an awkward silence, Zack finally spoke up.

“C’mon Nola, let’s go home.” He grabbed your hand and you both exited the bar, turning once more before leaving to see the General staring at you. The way his intense eyes watched your form excited you, he once again was here to help you. But why was he always around for these times? You automatically thought it was him stalking you but c’mon, you were in a popular soldier bar, everything with him was just a coincidence… right? 

Zack walked you home, apologizing for his friend’s behaviour. But at the same time laughing at what punishment he would receive from Sephiroth. And like the gentleman he was, he walked you straight to your apartment door and left for the night. 

Although the night ended on a tense note, you did have fun with Zack. It felt good to take your mind off of things. But this wouldn’t steer you away from what your plan was. Well whatever plan you had. This was just a nice break before getting back into it. For every time you smiled, you laughed, you breathed, you were happy, all you thought about was how O’Connor would never experience the same.


	8. Chapter 8

After several days of “borrowing” documents, your apartment looked like it belonged to a crazy conspiracist. Your once clutter free living room was littered with papers and sticky notes. Each piece had some importance to your plan. Red strings linked one page to the next, criss crossing all over the room, you had to duck just to leave the couch. But what you needed the most were surveillance tapes from the attack. You remember hearing a sound, so possibly the tapes could reveal some sort of device setting off the machine? It’s not like you did this before, so you may have been grasping at straws but since no one else seemed as invested, you did what you could. 

You did keep in contact with Zack, knowing he would probably bust in anytime and go on some rant. He knew that you were still doing your own thing, but I don’t think he knows the extent of it. Your days seemed to blend together, work, come home, continue on your case, and so forth. 

This didn’t distract you from your actual job, for if it did Tseng would sure have picked up on it and said something by now, but you knew he was somewhat avoiding you after the lunch you had. In fact, you didn’t see the General either but that was because he was on a mission currently with Zack. You did tell Zack to keep his eyes open for anything suspicious, to which he rolled his at you.   
________________________________________________________________________________________________  
It was just before 8am and you were making your way to your office, entering the elevator. Peering down at your phone, you didn’t realize that someone else was already there. Not until a cough broke you out of your trance. 

“Well good morrow my dear Miss Nola.”

You looked up from your phone, saw Genesis standing there, arms crossed, leaning against the wall staring directly at you. You replied. “Good morning Sir.”

“Oh please, I think we both know I use no such terms, Genesis is just fine.”

“Well in that case, just Nola for me.” You smiled at the 1st class solider. As you looked into his eyes, a flash of mischievous occurred. 

“I did not realize how close you were with the puppy, until I saw you the other night.” He raised an eyebrow. 

“Umm yea, I guess, Zack and I hit it off really well and have become pretty close.”

Genesis pondered for a moment, swishing some red hair away from his face. “Yes, it seems he’s not the only one.”

“What does that mean?”

The elevator doors opened on your floor, Genesis gestured with his hand for you to exit first, stepping off the elevator he was right behind you. He was so close you could smell his cologne and the quiet sounds of his breathing. 

“I’ll walk you to your office and we can…..chat.”

Waiting for him to continue, he picked up on your uneasiness and started to talk. 

“It seems you’ve made a great impression on my dear friend as well.”

“I’m not sure I know what you mean.” Of course, you knew he was talking about Sephiroth, but you weren’t about to say anything on that matter. 

He scoffed. “Mmmm I think you do but I’ll answer anyways. Sephiroth seems to have taken a liking to you, that itself is a surprise, he’s not the most….out going one, especially when it comes to beautiful ladies.” He looked over at you gauging your expression.

Giving him nothing, he continued.

“I thought for sure he was going to kill that poor kid you were with at the bar. I don’t think I’ve seen him that angry on the battlefield.”

“I highly doubt that.” You snapped. This conversation was making you upset and you had no patience to be played with.

He stopped dead in his tracks, took your hand and kissed the top with a slight bow.

“Apologies my dear, I was only speaking of what I observed. Although, you have given me some insight on your behalf now. I do hope you won’t break his precious heart.” The way he smiled at the end sent shivers up your spine, it was almost like he was mocking you. “If you’ll excuse me, I have mission to prepare for, good day.”

“Good day to you too….I hope your mission goes well.”

He grinned at you, then turned on his heel to leave, his red coat swaying as he glided down the hall. You shook your head at his antics and entered your office.   
____________________________________________________________________________________________

Genesis walked away from Nola, grinning to himself at what he accomplished. Unaware of the lurking blue eyes. 

“And what are you smiling about?”

“Oh nothing, just had a nice little talk with our friend’s crush.”

Angeal narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest. “Don’t do anything stupid Genesis, you should know better than to get involved in Sephiroth’s affairs.”

“I’m not doing anything stupid Angeal, I was merely talking with Nola, no harm in doing so.”

“Your correct but if your asking her about Sephiroth then there is harm in that.”

“Oh please, I was being a good wing man, trying to see if her feelings are the same as his, that’s all. I mean it’s not everyday he sets his eyes on someone.” 

“Correct again, but when was the last time Sephiroth has ever paid any attention to anyone before, I can’t think of a time. The last thing he needs is for you to do what you do best and get involved and have this whole thing blow up. Would you want him to meddle in your personal life?” 

Replying under his breath, Genesis spoke. “If he was a good wing man.” 

“….”

“FINE, no, happy now? Anyways, as much as this conversation is exciting me.” He rolled his eyes dramatically. “I’m off to retrieve some materia in a cave east of Kalm.”

“Why don’t any of the 2nd class soldiers do this?”

“It seems Director Lazard received some intel on some very rare materia, handing this to a bunch of puppies would surely backfire. They don’t know how to handle such powerful materia like myself. Hence why the best is being sent.” Genesis flipped his hair over his shoulder in a dramatic matter.

Laughing Angeal spoke. “You know jousting me like that doesn’t work. I’ll see you when you get back then.” He clapped his hand on his friend’s back. 

And with that the childhood friends departed, each continuing with their day. Genesis making his way to the garage. Waiting for him there was a caravan stocked with a few crates that would soon hold this rare materia. Three 3rd class soldiers all talking to one another, stood up straight and saluted Genesis as he walked by to the front seat of the truck, rolling his eyes he thought “A full day being spent with 3rds, the goddess truly hates me indeed.”

___________________________________________________________________________________________________

The Caravan took off heading towards the cave that hosted this rare materia. Genesis propped open his book, obviously Loveless as he would read nothing less. It would be a few hours until they would arrive at their destination. He had to do something to pass the time and talking was not an option. 

Finally after an uneventful tour, they arrived at the said materia cave. Jumping out of the passenger seat Genesis address the soldiers.

“Alright listen up! Our mission is to retrieve the rare materia that the Director has requested.” Holding up a photo of the dark red balls of materia to the soldiers. “DO NOT touch the materia, if you find some, call for me and I will come to extract. You are not capable of holding them, only I can. Do I make myself clear?!”

“Sir yes sir!” They all sung together. 

With that, the three 3rd class soldiers unloaded the caravan and departed in the direction of their leader.

“Is he always this smug?” One solider quipped. 

“It’s because were 3rds, he thinks it’s beneath him to be around us.”  
______________________________________________________________________________________________

Entering the cave proved no issues. Genesis separate himself from the soldiers to search on his own. The cave was incredibly dark and smelt like mouldy water. Only his mako eyes paved a way of light. Continuing the search for the materia took nearly 3 hours until one solider yelled for Genesis. His enhanced hearing picked up on the soldier’s voice and made his way over, he saw the soldiers standing over the eerie red glow of the cluster of materia. Stepping aside they let the elite solider make his way in. 

Genesis bent down, observing the materia first with his eyes. Slowly he withdrew his glove off and hovered his hand over the materia, feeling the power already, he picked one up. The materia travelled through his body, although the color gave it away, he knew it was a summon. Scanning the other four balls on the ground he picked them up, none gave the same feeling. Confused at the situation. A Solider spoke up.

“Sir, is this what we are looking for?”

“Indeed.”

“Should we pack them up?”

Genesis eyed the solider for a moment, contemplating the situation. Only one materia unleashed the summon power, yet there were four others, identically but yielding no such release. He examined the others once more, not knowing why they were different. His senses kicked in and told him to leave the rest behind. 

“No, were taking the one.” He stood up. 

“But sir! It’s materia! Shouldn’t we take them all?”

“I said no.” Taking the one materia, Genesis wrapped it into the container, directing the 3rds to exit the cave. 

The one solider who questioned Genesis lingered over the materia left behind. It would do no harm to take one, would it? Ignoring the direct command of his superior the young soldier gathered the materia and stuffed it into his pocket, quickly catching up with the team. 

As they continued back to the caravan, Genesis once again hopping into the passenger seat, one solider took to driving while the other two stayed in the back cargo space. 

Genesis couldn’t shake this feeling he was having. Why would there be multiple summon materias with only one hosting true power? With him being the best magic wielder at Shinra, he would know the most. It didn’t make any sense. Ignoring the feeling once more, he opened his book and continued to read.

Halfway through the trip, the solider in the cargo space carefully rubbed the materia in his pocket, smiling to himself at what a find. He would brag later to the other soldiers on his treasure. But with each passing minute his pants pocket began to feel warm. At first thinking it was just a normal thing with materia, he ignored it. But as time went on, it became hotter and hotter. Since he had never dealt with materia before, he assumed nothing of it. 

“Hey, what’s up with you? Your sweating.” The one 3rd addressed his friend under his breath. Glancing quickly at the elite solider in the front. 

“Nothing.”

“Dude, you look like shit, what gives?”

“I said nothing.”

Looking down at his pants pocket now, the red materia was now shining through his pants, casting a red shadow on the roof. 

The other solider noticing the glow spoke up. “You have to be shitting me right now!” Raising his voice, piquing the interest of Genesis, who turned his torso to view the 3rd. 

“What are you talking about soldier?” Genesis addressed him. 

The two 3rds stared at one another not saying anything. The glow increasing and heating up even more. Genesis turned his body even more and saw this. His senses kicked in. He yelled. “GET OUT!!” 

The soldier’s eyes widened at the sudden change in volume. Before they could even register what was happening the young soldiers pants ignited, setting himself on fire. Genesis slammed his body into the driver, opening the door in one swift movement, pushing them both to the ground as the truck barrelled forward. They both tumbled around before Genesis stood up and glanced at the truck, not even a second later from when they hit the ground the truck exploded. The blast pushed him and the other solider a few feet away.

Standing up once more and dusting himself off, Genesis raced over to the solider to inspect his wounds, nothing serious, just cuts, he whispered to himself, soon the 3rd was soon covered in a green glow, healing his scrapes. He looked at the caravan, which was now completely on fire. Both soldiers dead and materia gone. He shook his head at such a stupid mistake. 

“Sir?”

“What?!”

“I think he took one of the materias from that cave, you know the one you said not to?”

“Yes thanks solider, I think I got that much.”

Genesis took his phone from his jacket and dialed a number, waiting for the line to pick up.

“Hey, we have a problem, going to need some help.” The other person said something. “Yea I’m fine and same with one other, but we lost some 3rds. I’ll explain when I get there.” He hung up and looked at the other 3rd. 

“Take a seat solider, our ride will be here soon.” Genesis sat on a rock that line the side of the road. Thinking to himself once more, thank the goddess for his senses for if it weren’t for that, he would be burnt to a crisp right now. Stupid 3rds and their impulses. He knew his senses were telling him to be careful, it's just unfortunate that someone didn't listen to him.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________

**Knock knock knock**

“Coming!” You yelled to whoever was at your door. Carefully stepping over your notes, ducking under some string. You opened the door to a distraught Zack. Ignoring you, he pushed you aside carefully and walked into your apartment. He paced back and forth in your kitchen, not saying anything.

“Zack? What’s wrong?”

He still said nothing. He was biting his nail while looking down at his feet. You walked over to him and lightly put your hand on his shoulder. He finally looked up at you with worried eyes.

“I think your right Nola.”

“Right about what?”

“About the insider job thing.”

“Why do you say that? Did you find something out about the Airbuster?!” Your voice peaked up with enthusiasm, hopefully he had some good news. However, his next words debunked that feeling.

“No, but Genesis had trouble with his mission today, he just got back and called me, Sephiroth and Angeal into his office. Apparently, he was sent to get some materia in Kalm and one of the 3rds took a materia that Genesis said to leave behind. After that when they travelled back the materia ignited the 3rd and set the whole truck on fire. Two soldiers died, Genesis was able to save only one of them.”

“Oh my god Zack, I’m so sorry!”

“Genesis is blaming the solider for the situation. Saying he told them to leave some materia behind. But I don’t know Nola. This is too convenient with everything else.”

“Did Genesis say anything else? Like will he tell the Director?”

“Well he will cause the materia they were sent to retrieve is gone, but by the sounds of it, Genesis doesn’t believe foul play. He just thinks it was a stupid solider.”

“And what do you think?”

He paused finally looking up at you, but as his eyes found yours, they trailed behind your form to your living room, where it was covered with your masterpiece. 

“Holy shit Nola! Is this what you’ve been up to?”

Proud of your work you smiled. “I told you Zack, I wasn’t going to let this go. And although it breaks my heart to know people died today, this gives me more push to find the truth.”

Zack took a moment to take in the sight, stepping over documents on the ground, his hands lightly touched your notes, his eyes darting from one side to the next, finally he turned around and smiled at you.

“I should have come sooner, I should have had more interest and believed you before, but with what happened, I can’t ignore this. Genesis can blame the 3rd all he wants as he always does but this is just too much.” 

“Okay? So what are you saying?”

“I’m saying let me join your team Ma’am.” He mocked saluted you. 

This brought great joy to you as you flung yourself forward and crashed into Zack’s body. His arms circled your frame. With you having intel from the Turks and now Zack from solider, you would no doubt be closer to finding the truth! Hopefully this would speed things up before more people die. You shut your eyes, inhaled Zack’s sweet scent and tried not to think of more blood being shed. Poor O’Connor and now those poor 3rd class soldiers. You trembled at the thought of Shinra once again giving probably no details to the victim’s families. With more deaths happening, a dark shadow was being cast over your mind.


	9. Chapter 9

You and Zack were currently on the floor in your living room, staring at the papers you’ve been gathering. So far Zack couldn’t see anything out of the ordinary. You were hoping with a fresh pair of eyes that he would see something you didn’t. It was getting more and more infuriating by the day. You berated yourself constantly at your failure, you were your own worst critic. 

“I still think this is an inside job, first you and Angeal and now Genesis. I mean Genesis can blame the solider who took the other materia but let’s get real here. It’s too much of a coincidence.”

“I agree.”

“Soooooo do you know anyone who would want to attack or try to kill the 1sts?”

Zack pondered for a moment. His hand rubbing his chin.

“Not really. No one can be that stupid to think they can take any of them on. And to that point, why hasn’t there been an attack on Sephiroth?”

“Probably because they wouldn’t stand a chance.” You deadpanned, eliciting snickers from you both. 

“True.”

“Do you think you could ask around with your friends? See if they know anyone who might hold a grudge within solider?”

“I can, I’ll ask some of my buds. I know there’s men out there who are jealous of the 1st class soldiers but that’s nothing special.” 

“How is everyone treated during training and such? Maybe someone was mistreated by them and that’s why they want revenge.”

Zack laughed at your comment. “Nola, this is solider, surely you know as well with the Turks that this isn’t a pleasant job. The training that everyone goes through including myself is hard. Not only physically with the mako shots but mentally as well. We’re trained to not give a shit, strike first before your enemy does. That kind of attitude doesn’t come from trainers who hold your hand and baby you.” 

Zack did have a point, getting into solider was hard but staying with it, through all the physical challenges was even harder. Being a solider was not for everyone.

“I know, it’s just I don’t really know where to go from here.” You felt a bit defeated already. 

“Okay, let’s pick this up tomorrow, it’s getting late and maybe we’ll have some new ideas after a good night rest, plus I have training tomorrow with Sephiroth and I need all the sleep I can get!”

Laughing you replied. “Okay sounds good, keep me posted on tomorrow and let me know if you think of anything and I’ll do the same.” 

You walked Zack out of your apartment. Maybe he was right, maybe a good sleep will sprout some new ideas, you were just happy you finally had someone on your side. And had someone to distract you from losing your mind.   
________________________________________________________________________________________________

Your thoughts lingered to the other day before Zack barged in demanding you to hang with him. To the day when you were trying to access the tapes. You got some stupid clearance message. 

Your fingers drummed the top of your desk until….

“OH!” You jumped up from your chair. You had an idea! Racing out of your office you glanced at your watch, seeing it was lunchtime, you knew exactly where Zack would be.

Making your way to the solider cafeteria, you spotted Zack’s black spikey hair a mile away. Speed walking to him like you were on a mission you slid your butt on the bench and glided right into his side, not paying attention as to who was looking. He turned his face, surprised by your sudden and close appearance. Noticing you had a devious grin. 

“See boys what happens when you give the ladies a taste? One night out with me and now look at her.” The others laughed at Zack’s cockiness. 

“Oh shut up.” Laughing at his ridiculous comment you nodded to the other soliders sitting at the table, one of them you remembered, Cloud. 

You scootched closer to him, so no one else would hear. “I have an idea Zack, a good one too! But I need your help and you can’t tell anyone or we’ll both get in shit.”

“Oh boy, what is it?”

“Were going to break into Tseng’s office.”

His eyes widened. “Are you nuts!?” He raised his voice a bit, but you slammed your hand over his mouth.

“I’m dead serious. I don’t have clearance right now, and I usually do Zack. The only way to see the full report and tapes is to get higher access. It’s simple! Tseng has a meeting tomorrow from 1pm-2pm and that’s our window. All I need you to do is keep an eye on Tseng, make sure he doesn’t leave the meeting early, while I sneak into his office and bump my clearance up. It should only take 30min give or take, but I need you in case something goes wrong.” You eyed him, waiting for his reaction, your blood was pumping, and you were getting so excited for your plan. Anything to take your mind away from the constant shadow on your life. 

After a few seconds of Zack looking at you then at his hands, he finally spoke.

“Fine—”

“Yes!” You interrupted him. 

“But! On one condition.”

“Okay? And that would be? I mean other than helping your best friend who desperately needs your help?” You gave him your best puppy dog eyes. 

“Ha! Nice try but guilt doesn’t work on me. The annual Solider and Turk ball is coming up, you know the one where they give awards to people who excelled.”

“Yes, I’m familiar with it, same people get the same awards, the President gives the same speech, and everyone gets hammered and acts like idiots.”

“Yes, that one. I need a date.”

“Oh, Zack nooooo, please don’t make me go! I was hoping to get out of it this year.” You were hoping with what happened, Tseng would allow you to skip it.

“Sorry but that’s my condition. I need some arm candy this year.” He flashed you a mischievous grin. 

“Okay first off, I’m not some piece of meat, secondly thank you for calling me arm candy and third deal!”

You grabbed Zack’s face and kissed his cheeks and forehead with fast little kisses, not meant to be sexual in any way, more like kisses you give your dog or cat. Zack was slightly blushing at your gesture.

“See boys, what did I tell you? She can’t get enough of me.” 

“Solider Fair!” 

The cafeteria went silent. No one dared to blink, everyone held in their breaths as that deep commanding voice echoed throughout the room. 

You and Zack broke away from one another and looked over behind the table and saw a very angry looking Sephiroth. 

“Oh shit what now. Be right back.” Zack said under his breath as he got up from your embrace and walked over to the General. You avoided eye contact with the fearsome man, not really sure why….

“You know I heard the whole conversation, right?”

Your face turned to look at Cloud. “Don’t know what you’re talking about.” Now avoiding his eye contact, you looked down at your nails. 

Cloud scoffed. “Yea sure you don’t.”

Sighing loudly. “Fine you heard it, but please don’t say anything.”

“I won’t, I’m not like that.” He paused, looking like he wanted to say something else to you. “I want to apologize for Landin’s behaviour the other night. I know he drank too much, and I know that’s no excuse, but he isn’t that kind of guy. So, I hope you don’t hold it against him.” He eyed you for a moment. 

You examined his features, he was quite cute looking, had that innocent looking expression, his blonde hair much like Zack’s was somehow a mess but a perfect mess. See? Everyone in solider is good looking!

“I won’t. I know he drank a lot, and I know Zack told me the same thing, so I won’t hold it against him.” Now that you broke the ice with the shy Cloud, you thought this would be a good segway to something else. “Cloud… do you know of anyone in solider who would have a grudge against solider?”

“Not really, other than our enemies but why would anyone hold a grudge against soldier if there in solider? If they got in, that’s a huge accomplishment, no one would want to jeopardize that.”

And as if a lightbulb went off above your head, you smiled greatly at Cloud. He was right! Maybe it wasn’t someone who was in solider getting revenge but someone who didn’t get into solider! You’ve been going about this all wrong!

“Cloud, I owe you big time for this! I know the last time we hung didn’t end the greatest but let’s hang out soon, for a do over!” 

“I’m sure we will meet again, considering your going as Zack’s date to the ball. I’ll see you then, if not before then.” 

“Shit, right. Yea I’ll see you then!” You jogged off in the opposite direction to your office to formulate your plan. Too oblivious to notice a certain silver haired General staring at you.   
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

Sephiroth watched as Nola left the room without even glancing his way. He knew he was an intimidating man, his height and feline eyes a contributing factor but wasn’t she used to him by now? Did he not try to make himself less…. Himself?

He watched as the cafeteria doors closed behind the young woman. Knowing Zack was right behind him, he turned around and faced the soldier who just received affection from her. Eyeing the solider for a moment, he could still smell her scent on him. Now feeling a bit irritated he needed some sort of release. 

“Zack… training room, 15 min, understood?” Sephiroth barked.

“Sir yes sir.” Zack sung as he walked out of the cafeteria. 

“Geez Sephiroth, you might want to tone it down with the jealousy.” Genesis quipped as he came to stand next to the General.

“Genesis. Mind your place.”

“He’s right Sephiroth. As I hate to admit it, Genesis makes a point. You don’t want to scare her away.”

“And how am I scaring her away?”

“Ha! Did you not see how she avoided looking at you when you yelled in your “General Voice.”” Genesis had both hands doing air quotes around the last words. 

Angeal side eyed his friend knowing very well he was getting more pleasure that necessary from this situation. “Genesis…” 

“Maybe not yell at every guy that comes to talk to her Sephiroth.”

“These….boys…. do not deserve to speak with her.”

“Not even Zack?” Angeal questioned. 

Sephiroth whipped his head around and stared at his friends, knowing there was slight truth in their comments. But right now, he didn’t care to listen. Instead he walked out of the cafeteria, his long legs carrying him through the doorway in a few strides, down to the training room.   
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Today was operation “sneak into Tseng’s office while he’s in a meeting and have Zack keep look out while you do your thing” Okay so it wasn’t the greatest name but who cares! You were patiently waiting for Zack down a quiet hallway not too far away from your office. You saw the giddy solider making his way to you.

“Heya!”

“Hey!” You chirped back. “I have to tell you Zack I am so excited right now! My heart is beating fast and my blood is pumping but this feeling is like, nothing I’ve felt before!” 

This feeling was great because it took you away from thinking of death again. 

Zack laughed watching you hop on the spot. “Yea well I have to tell you, Sephiroth almost killed me yesterday in training. Usually he tones down his strength, but man! I almost lost an arm with how close he swung Masamune at me. Probably upset from something he saw yesterday.”

“Yesterday? What are you talking about?”

“Pretty sure the whole reason he yelled for me was to get away from you.”

“Well that makes no sense because he knows were close.”

“Right…. But you were kissing me.”

“Okay woah woah woah, they were friendly kisses.” You tried to defend your actions. 

Zach laughed again. “Still kisses Nola.”

Sighing and rolling your eyes. “Sorry about that, I was just too excited. Oh! I spoke to Cloud yesterday too and he gave me an idea! Maybe were going about this all wrong. Maybe instead of an inside job it’s someone who didn’t make it into solider?”

“Hmmm never thought of that but yea! That’s a good lead.”

“Anyways on with our mission, the time is currently.” You looked down at your watch. “12:30pm.” You dug into your pocket and pulled out two earpieces, handing one to Zack. 

“Here take this, this is an earpiece we can use to talk to one another in case something happens, you can warn me, or I can warn you.”

“Where did you get these?”

“Took it from the Turks weaponry room.” You replied shrugging your shoulders.

“Weaponry room?? You have access to it??”

“I told you Zack I have access to a lot of things, which is why it’s weird I don’t have access to this case file. Now put it in Eagle.”

“Eagle?”

“Yes, I gave us code names too!” You started to giggle at your stupid idea. “Mine is Sparrow. So, in case anyone hears us they don’t know were talking to one another.”

“Oh my god Nola, you are getting way too much fun out of this. You should think about being a surveillance Turk.”

After testing the audio and deciding it was all in order, you gave Zack instructions on where to go and where to keep a look out from. Making your way to Tseng’s office, you peered down at your watch, 1pm. Go time!

Walking down the hallway you had to tell yourself to play it cool, don’t look suspicious, just look normal. Smile at everyone, say your usual hellos. Keep walking.

You soon reached Tseng’s office. You “accidentally” dropped your pen and bent down to pick it up, while all discreetly looking around in every direction to see if anyone was watching. Coming to the conclusion no one was around, you stepped into the behemoth's den. 

You knew exactly what you needed to get done. Opening up Tseng’s computer, you logged in using his credentials (you previously knew it from before when Tseng was away and asked you to pull a report from his file) You pulled up the Turk database and searched for your name. Finding it, you punched in the code for higher clearance and waited for the green light.

“Eagle, what’s the status, over.”

“Sparrow all is in place, target is still occupied, over”

“Copy, ET for completion 15min, over”

“Copy copy.”

As you waited patiently you started to think if this is what Reno and Rude do? If so, it was pretty cool! Although your situation was less dangerous it still took a lot of planning to do! Maybe you could be a Turk? Status is 65% complete.  
___________________________________________________________________________________________________

“Sparrow do you copy?”

“Eagle, I copy.”

“Target is leaving the nest, ETA is 10 min, over”

“Eagle, initiate protocol Urgent Fury, over”

You could almost hear the smile on Zack’s face as he replied.

“Roger that Sparrow.”

You knew things could go south so you had to have a back up plan. That’s where Urgent Fury kicked in. Realizing Tseng, being the efficient person he was, would probably finish early, you created a plan that only Zack would be able to pull off.  
Status 85% complete.   
______________________________________________________________________________________________

“Tseng! Wait up!” Zack ran to meet up with Tseng who just left the conference room.

“Zack, what do you need.”

“I just have a few questions regarding some upcoming missions the Turks have with soldier.”

Tseng stopped in his tracks to look over to his right at Zack. “Everything you need will be in the dossier Zack, please refer to it.” Tseng continued to walk. But Zack quickly jumped in front. Sighing to himself he regarded the puppy once more.

“Right but this is different! Do you know where you got your intel for these missions? How many Turks will be going? Are we all leaving together? Do you feel confident with your Turks performance lately? Do you feel confident with my performance? How long have you been a Turk for? Is Reno taking lead this time? Is it true he almost died last time? Is it also true Rude can knock someone out with one hit? How is your current relationship with solider? Do you speak often to the 1st? If so what kind of conversations do you have? Is the helicopter prepared properly for take off? Do you know who will be flying? Do they have the right certificates? How long do you think the missions will last for? Do we have enough supplies? Did you want to meet the other 3rd class soldiers coming? Do you think soldiers are tougher than Turks? Do you think this mission will test everyone’s skills? What kind of skills do you have? Why not become solider? What---”

“FAIR! ENOUGH!” Tseng snapped like he’s never snapped before. “If you ask me one more question, I will shoot you in the foot, are we clear?”

“Yes sir.” Zack replied in a defeated tone.

Tseng walked around Zack and carried down the hall. Zack watched him leave, smiling to himself. 

“Sparrow, do you copy? Urgent Fury is complete, ETA for target is 10min.”

“Copy copy Eagle, operation complete, meet at rendezvous Skyzone. Over.”

“Copy that, over.”  
______________________________________________________________________________________________

You couldn’t believe it! You actually succeeded without having both your covers blown! Again, you patiently waited for Zack down the hallway from earlier. 

“Nola, you should have seen how pissed Tseng was at me!” Zack chuckled. “He was so mad it was hilarious! Did you get everything done?”

“Yupp!! And honestly Zack I couldn’t have done it without you, so thanks again.”

You both high fived at your successful mission.

“Well now I’m going to go back to work and later I’ll access the stuff I couldn’t before. I’ll keep you posted obviously.”

“Please do, and let me know if you need anymore help, because this has been so much fun! Seriously Sparrow you should consider being a surveillance Turk.”

“Thanks Eagle, I’ll think about it.”

And with that you both separated and got back to your day, no one suspecting a thing. You couldn’t wait to access the tapes; it was only a matter of time before something would pop up. Hopefully you were one step closer to finding out whose been creating havoc here. With any luck this whole ordeal would be over and you could go back to normal, back to being happy.... Or back to whatever you were before.


	10. Chapter 10

Finally! You punched in your credentials; several screens popped up. You clicked the folder for the date of the attack and scrolled through to the timeframe. Before you could click start, you mentally prepared yourself. Taking a deep breath in, clearing your mind, chanting a small “you can do this” mantra. You stared at the screen for several moments, your heart was picking up in pace as you were mentally going through the events from that day without even starting the clip. The past weeks have been incredibly hard for you. Each day you felt like the shadow that followed you around, was consuming more and more of you.

Was this why it was taking you so long to press play? Were you afraid to go through this all over again? To feed the shadow more darkness. You tried your best to take your mind away from it all but somehow you found yourself in the same state. It didn’t help that survivor’s guilt had taken hold of you as well.

As if your hand had a mind of its own, your finger pressed play. Your eyes glued to the screen as you watched the clip in slow motion. You replayed certain parts, stopped to zoom in and turned up the volume to listen. Tears filled your eyes as you saw O’Connor on the screen, you weren’t prepared for this. You put your hands on your desk and pushed to move your chair back until it bashed against the wall behind you, standing up quickly you paced in front of your desk. 

You shook your head each time you glanced back at the screen. You felt the need to throw up, picking up your glass of water, you chugged it back. Rubbing the sides of your temples, you made your way back to the chair and pressed play. You heard the metal screeching noise and saw the robot activate but that was it. You examined each person in that room to see if they did anything but sadly no one showed it any interest. You replayed it ten times after that, but still nothing caught your eye. You stopped as soon as the robot activated though, knowing if you went past that part, your mind would fade away into darkness. 

“What a waste. What a colossal waste!” You picked up your empty glass and threw it at the wall, shattering into a million pieces. You left your office in a huff, leaving the glass shards everywhere, you couldn’t be bothered to clean it up.  
______________________________________________________________________________________________________  
You arrived home, your legs moved to the bathroom as if your body was on autopilot, to draw up a hot bath. Stripping your clothes off you sank into the steaming tub. All your hard work of gathering documents, your plan with Zack, forcing yourself to relive that day, was all for nothing. What did you expect? That you would get your answer? That the bad guy would be there waving at the camera? Could you be anymore foolish?!

Your hands covered your face. You were so tired of feeling this way. So tired of the constant guilt the consumed your soul. You were silently and slowly breaking down. One moment your fine and the next you’re on a downward spiral. 

“Why can’t I catch a break?” You finally released the tears you were holding back. Your whole body shook as you cried. 

You needed someone to talk to, but you didn’t want to call Tseng. Stepping out of the tub you dried yourself off, put on your sweats and reached for your phone. You hit a number and waited as the line ringed.

“Heyya”

“……”

“Uhh, hello?”

“…. Zack, can you please come over, like now?”

“Nola are you okay?”

“Not really, I just need you.”

“I’ll be right there! Let me shower, be there in 15 min!” He hung up the phone before saying goodbye. 

Precisely 12 minutes later, you heard your front door open, footsteps coming towards your bedroom before they stopped at the side of your bed. Zack crawled over to your laying form, he started to rub your back in a soothing manner.

“Nola? Talk to me, what’s wrong? What happened?”

“Nothing happened. That’s the problem. I saw the surveillance tapes, and nothing happened.” You turned to face him; his piercing blue eyes screamed sorrow as he took you in.

“So, the tapes didn’t show anything?”

“Nothing at all. The only thing I got from those tapes is regret! God Zack I’m so stupid! Why did I think I could do anything to help, why did I think I could find some truth! This whole thing is just shit! I feel like such an idiot. I wish I didn’t even survive that stupid day!”

At your confession, quicker than you had time to react, Zack wrapped his arms around your body, pulling you into a tight embrace. His head rested on top of yours as your face was buried in his neck. You broke down crying again. You don’t know long you cried for, but it was a while until Zack finally spoke.

“Don’t say stuff like that. You’re not stupid and you’re not an idiot. Do you think anyone else would put this much effort in? No. Do you think anyone would care as much? No. Do you think anyone would force themselves to relive a traumatic moment that may or may not lead to some truth? No.”

He rubbed the back of your head again, quietly shushing your cries.

“I know strong soldiers who put their lives in danger but don’t have the heart and courage like you. You should be proud of yourself. I wish I knew how to help you, feel the way I feel about you. But just know I will always be here. Always.”

“Thanks Zack…. Maybe I need a break from this silly idea. I feel myself slipping away.”

“It’s not silly Nola.”

“Maybe, but I don’t think it’s the best thing for me right now.”

He pulled back a little, in order for your faces to align.

“Let me take over for a bit okay? I’ll do some research on the side, we’ll take it from the other approach we talked about, that it was someone who didn’t get into soldier.”

“You will?”

“Of course. This is a team effort. You’re my comrade in this, and I think it’s best for me to take the torch from you. Okay?”

You hesitated; you knew Zack would do everything in his power to help you. Your heart was telling you to keep going but your mind was saying to stop.

“Okay.”

He smiled at you; you gave him the best smile you could force.

“Now let’s get some rest. I’ll stay the night on the couch and tomorrow will be a new day. You need a break from this.”

“Sounds good, thank you Zack.”

“Anytime.”

With that, Zack got off your bed, pulled the covers back and tucked you in. He placed a small kiss on the top of your head and left for the living room. Your body finally relaxed, as if a weight was lifted off. Finally, you could slow your heart rate down. You were too invested in the moment, and with everything you have gone through, you couldn’t let this consume your soul. Your eyes slowly began to shut until finally your mind stopped racing and you fell into a peaceful slumber.  
_________________________________________________________________________________________________  
You awoke to the smell of coffee filling your room. Slowly getting up, you sat in your bed peering out the window, it looked like a really nice day out. The sun was shining, clear sky, a perfect day to relax. Not wanting to get up you threw your body back to the bed, it hit something hard and you gasped turning around fast.

“Heya”

“Shit! Zack! You scared the shit outta me!”

“I can tell. You just looked so peaceful I didn’t want to ruin the moment.” 

“Yea well moment is definitely ruined.” You shook your head at him but could not hold back your grin. “Did you sleep well?”

“I did, and how about you? How are you feeling so far?”

“Yeaaa I’m good so far…..thanks again, for last night, sorry I was such a mess.”

“You weren’t a mess. Now! We are not going to talk about anything depressing today!” He stood up quickly and ran out of the room. You stared at the door, not knowing if you were meant to follow? You threw your legs off the bed and made your way to the kitchen.

Your dining room table was littered with scones, cookies, muffins, and pastries of many types. There stood Zack, pouring coffee into a cup on the table. He turned around and waved for you to come. You walked over to him, he brought the chair out for you to sit on, you sat down, and he slowly pushed the chair towards the table.

“Zack this is incredible! How did you do this?”

“Well Angeal is a fantastic cook and baker, annnnnnnd he owed me a favour, so I called him last night after you went to bed and organized this.”

You were completely speechless. You peered up at Zack from where he stood with your jaw dropped.

“And I know how much you like to eat so none of this food will go to waste with the both of us eating.”

“This is absolutely amazing! Everything looks delicious! You’ll have to tell Angeal thank you from me.”

“I will.” He put his hands on his hips, admiring his work. You grabbed his hand and tugged down, indicating for him to join. He sat next to you and began to fill your plates. 

You took a bite of some sort of flaky pastry filled with whipped cream and milk chocolate. After you grabbed a muffin, that was still warm, popped off the top and began to munch. Everything was divine. The coffee was steaming hot and everything was just perfect.

After you both finished everything, not a crumb left behind. Zack joined the table once more after doing the dishes. He put his hand underneath his chin and rested it on the table, looking at you.

“I just want you to know Nola, that I meant what I said last night. Let me take it from here and give you a break. I think you need to distance yourself from this right now. Do something for yourself for once.” 

“I know. And I will do something for myself too. I already have something in mind.”

He raised an eyebrow at you. “Oh? And what would that be?”

“I’m going shopping soon. Shopping for a dress for the ball coming up.”

“You still want to go? It’s coming up soon, I just assumed you would decline.”

“Nonsense, we made a deal. You helped me and now I’m repaying you. I think it’ll be fun anyways! And I only say that cause I’ll be with you. It’ll be nice to joke around. Usually when I go with the Turks, Tseng is always so serious, Rude barely talks and Reno is too busy getting rejected by every girl there.”

He chuckled at your description. “Well you know I won’t deny a pretty date.”

“Yea yea smooth talker.”

Zack soon left after clearing up the remainder dishes. 

You spent the next couple of weeks in the routine that you were used to. Waking up, coffee, work, come home, eat, bathe, relax. The consistency of it calmed you. You stayed away from anything that would trigger you, you even started to practice yoga at night to put your mind at ease. And it all helped. You felt better, like the shadow that followed you around shrunk a bit, not completely but enough for your mind to rest. This was good, this was what your body was telling you, what you needed. And instead of ignoring it and having an anxiety attack, you listened. You finally listened.   
____________________________________________________________________________________________  
Finally! Back home! You spent nearly 4 hours finding a dress and you must say, you were quite proud of the find. You took the dress and hung it in your closet, taking a step back, you admired the outfit.

The dress was a dark plum color, spaghetti straps held up the dress, a small revealing neckline to show a modest amount of cleavage. The mid section was a corset, dazzling with crystals that would show off your curves, it flared at your waist, hitting the floor, and on the left side was a slit leading up to your mid thigh. It would flow with every step you took. You paired it with a beige set of heels and since you weren’t a fan of jewelry you would wear a necklace that was once your moms. Picking the piece up, it was a classic silver chain and dangling from the middle was a crescent shaped moon, the moon itself was silver with one solitary diamond. It was a gift from your dad to your mom on their anniversary. You held it to your heart, breathing in deep with a smile on your face.

You texted Zack soon after and only told him on the colour of your dress, just in case he would do something crazy and make his tux a random color, you wanted to match.

As you sat in your living room with a hot cup of peppermint tea, you thought about the past few weeks. It was true, you definitely needed a break from your side investigation, and although it has been really hard for you, your state of mind put to the test everyday, you couldn’t help but be proud of it all.

After your parent’s deaths, you began to wonder what the point of this life was. You gave up on everything, you saw no light at the end of the tunnel. And when you almost died (again) from a robot, the same feelings resurfaced. But now something was different, with your mind in a better place you saw light at the end, you saw and could feel happiness. 

Caught up in the moment a sparkle caught your eye. Glancing up you saw it was shining from your bedroom. Walking over to see what it was, you found it being your mom’s necklace. Sparkling from the sunlight that was casting in your bedroom. Maybe your parents were giving you this strength, the strength to not give up and to continue living. You smiled and stroked the necklace. 

“I got your message loud and clear…..I love and miss you so much mom and dad.” A single tear glided off your face, but it wasn’t a sad tear, it was a happy one.  
____________________________________________________________________________________________  
Your state of mind was in such a better place than it has been since the incident. You didn’t ask Zack if he found anything out because you knew if you did, your mind would jump right back into it. This was meant to be a break. And now the ball was finally here.

You hated going to these things. Too many people around…too many fake people around. It was like school all over again, people had their clicks, the same individuals got recognized, the same boring speeches were made, the room filled with clapping from envious co-workers. Blah blah blah.

However, this year would be different, since you weren’t going with the Turks, you had a spunky friend to take you! A couple of days ago you told Tseng that you were going with Zack, he didn’t question it, just nodded.

You put some make up on, a bit more than usual but not a lot. You curled your hair and took the top half into a braided bun that rested halfway down your head. You got dressed and waited for Zack to stop by. A few minutes later there was a knock at your door. You quickly tied up your heels and answered it.

“Zack! You look amazing!” There was Zack, wearing an all black tux. Tucked in his jacket was a small dark plum handkerchief. Matching your dress perfectly. You still couldn’t understand how he didn’t have a girlfriend. Your mouth was practically salivating at the sight. 

“Who cares about me Nola, look at you!” He grabbed your hand and pulled you into the hallway, twirling around, your dress flared out as you spun. He took a step back and eyed you head to toe. “Absolutely magnificent Nola.” You blushed at his comment.

“Shall we go?” You spoke to Zack before his eyes would leave their sockets. He grabbed your hand and tucked it in his bent arm, you made your way to the event.  
________________________________________________________________________________________________  
As you both entered the ballroom, it was breathtaking. Hundreds of people were dressed in tuxes and dresses of many styles and colors. Everyone looking elegant and beautiful, feeling a bit uneasy, you tightened your grip on Zack’s arm, he looked down at you and nudged your shoulder, as if to tell you ‘its alright.’

You made your way to your reserved table. You passed by other tables. One had the President and Vice President there. Another had Scarlet, Reeve and Heidegger. In your peripheral you saw the 1st class soldier table, not wanting to make it obvious you quickly looked over and spotted the back of Sephiroth. His silver hair was straight as always, just begging to be touched, you wished he turned around, but he never did. Lastly you saw the Turk table. As you walked by the guys all wolf whistled and cat called you, not in a rude manner though. Tseng stood up and slightly bowed, you gave him a shy smile and nodded. Finally, you made it to the table, seated with other 2nd class soldiers and Cloud!

“Cloud! In a tux! You look very handsome.”

“Nola.” He took your hand and kissed the top. “You look beautiful as always, you could put all these women to shame.”

Zack pulled out your chair for you, you swept the back of your dress and sat down. Zack leaned over to whisper in your ear.

“Okay first is the stupid speeches after that we’ll dance okay? You have to dance with me.”

“I will…Do you know how to dance?”

“I do, do you?”

“Yupp! Prepare to be blown away sir!”   
_________________________________________________________________________________________  
The acknowledgements were boring as ever. You were proud though; Zack got an award for outstanding achievement from his latest mission. Then the usual people got their awards, Sephiroth, Angeal, Genesis, Tseng….. But this was getting boring, Zack was barely staying awake. You looked over and saw Cloud watching you, he lifted his hand and with his finger he gestured for you to come close. 

“Sup?”

“Did you complete your mission?”

“Oh! We did! And it wasn’t successful, but it was worth it. I do have to thank you though. You gave me the idea.”

“Idea?”

“Yea, you gave me the idea of it being someone who didn’t get into soldier. So, thank you.” You raised your champagne glass, and he clinked his to yours.

“No problem, I didn’t really mean to help but I’m happy I could.”

As the speeches wrapped up, it was now the “fun” part. With much hesitation, you took Zack’s hand as he offered it to you and made your way to the dance floor. You may have not been perfect at a lot of things but as a child your parents forced you to take dance lessons, so dancing was something that was very easy for you.

Zack spun you around, again creating a display that looked like a rose blooming open, all eyes were on you at the not subtle movement. Your heart began to race but as soon as Zack tugged your hand, pulled you into his body, wrapped another hand on your waist, he whispered in your ear “Don’t worry Nola, I could feel your heartbeat pick up in your hand, nothing embarrassing will come your way, just let me lead.” And with that he flowed you across the dancefloor. Each step you took was gentle, as if your feet were floating. One hand was rested on Zack’s shoulder while the other in his hand. You had to give it to the guy, he sure did know how to dance. 

This was actually kind of fun. You felt at peace dancing with Zack, it brought back memories of you dancing with your dad. The two of you danced a few more songs to the classical music that was played by the small orchestra. You told Zack you needed to rest and have some water, he stopped and took your hand, weaving you through the crowds. When you finally sat down, the rest of your table applauded your moves. You all joked and poked fun at one another, while simultaneously taking jabs at the higher ups. Zack excused himself as he wanted to greet Angeal, he asked if you wanted to come but you declined. 

You looked around and saw Tseng making his way to your table, knowing he wanted to probably ask you to dance, you started to panic. 

“May I have this dance milady?”

You looked over your shoulder at a strapping young man holding out his hand. You didn’t recognize the man but to be honest you didn’t recognize half the people here. He was in amazing shape as his tux fitted his body perfectly, you chalked it to be that he was a soldier, so you grabbed his hand and he led you to the dance floor. Once again you slyly peered to see Tseng stop and make way back to his table.

The young man pulled you into him and led you around the dancefloor.

“Does my dance partner have a name?” You asked him.

“Your hero”

You scoffed at his audacity. “Okay…hero… what do you do here?”

“This and that.”

“This and that? That’s all your giving me?” You slightly pulled away from him to leave. But he pulled you back roughly.

“Apologies, I do not have the best people skills. I’m a soldier.”

“Oh? What rank?”

“3rd”

“Very nice, well thank you 3rd class soldier hero for you have saved me the last second before I had to dance with my boss.” 

“Your very welcome, I’m guessing you’re a Turk?”

“Pffft! No! I’m their assistant.”

“Apologies again, I only assumed when I saw Tseng walk back to his table. Trouble with work?”

“Not really, just want to have fun tonight, you know?”

“That I do, I’m trying to avoid the 1st class soldiers as well.”

“Trouble at work?” You countered back to him.

He laughed slightly. “Maybe.” “So, tell me, do you always have this many admirers here?”

What an odd question…. “Admirers?”

“Yes. I saw you dancing with the black haired soldier, your own boss was surely coming to ask you to dance and it seems the 1st class table has been watching you the entire night.”

You peered around his body as his back was to the 1st class table, you didn’t think they were watching you.

“I didn’t notice.”

He danced you around the floor, you relaxed more as you made idle chit chat, when suddenly you felt his grip tighten on your hand, he let go immediately. “Excuse me I have to go.” His eyes seemed to be focused on something behind you. “Thank you for the dance.” He bowed slightly and darted across the dance floor, leaving you shell shocked for the moment. You stood there a few moments trying to figure out what the hell just happened. Suddenly broken out of your haze..

“May I have this dance?”  
____________________________________________________________________________________________  
Zack made his way to the 1st class table, peering over his shoulder to make sure one more time that Nola would be okay, yea she would, she had Cloud to talk to.

“Hey Angeal”

“Good evening Zack, you seem to be having a fun time with Nola.”

“I am! She’s a great dancer.”

Genesis chimed in. “Maybe I’ll take her around the dance floor then.” Zack looked over at Genesis who wasn’t looking at him but instead at Sephiroth. 

“Uhhhh I—”

“Are you and Nola together soldier Fair?” Zack made eye contact with the General, his posture was even more stiff than usual. 

“No sir, just friends, she owed me a favour otherwise I don’t think she would have come tonight.”

“Favour?”

“Yea but that’s not important.” Zack quickly tried to change the subject. “Will you be escorting any ladies to the dance floor?”

Sephiroth who seemed to ignore the question was stuck inside his own mind at the moment, his eyes were focused on something else. Zack followed his trail to the table where Nola was, she was being escorted to the dance floor by some random person, not recognizing him. Zack rolled his eyes, thinking here was the Great General, who conquered all wars and yet was afraid to approach his friend.

“I’m sure she would appreciate a break from my company.” Trying to drop the subtle hint of ‘get your ass over there and ask her you moron.’ But of course, it was not picked up, instead you heard a chair scrap across the floor. You saw Genesis stand up, Angeal grabbed his arm and whispered something to which Genesis ignored and walked past you straight for Nola.

“Oh no.” Zack said out loud. Looking once more at the General who now stood up and made his way to the exit.

“Don’t get involved Zack, there’s no point. Genesis is just being himself and Sephiroth is trying to figure some stuff out.”

“But ‘Geal, it’s so obvious!”

Angeal chuckled as he shook his head. “Sit down Zack, I have to congratulate you on your award.”  
_________________________________________________________________________________________________  
“Well? May I?”

You stared at Genesis’ hand for a few seconds before answering. “Sorry, Yes, I’d be honored.” 

“The honor is clearly all mine.” He gently grabbed your hand and got you into a dancing stance. He wore a burgundy tux and as always looked handsome. Why is he dancing with me and not some other lady here? You wondered.

Well no surprise, he danced perfectly. You barely felt your feet touching the floor as you latched on to his form.

“So, tell me Nola, are you sure you and the puppy aren’t an item?”

“Can a man and woman be friends without them being considered an item all the damn time?”

“Ohh, feisty, I like it. I guess they could, I only assume by how much time you spend together.”

“Like I said before SIR” You made a point to emphasize that word. “He and I got along well right away, that’s it.”

“Gasp! You hurt me with such titles.” He pulled you closer. This was now getting uncomfortable; you would rather dance with the President right now. As the song slowed down to the end, Genesis stopped moving and pulled away from you, he bowed his head and kissed the top of your hand. You thanked him in the most polite way you could and walked back to your table, hoping Zack would be there.

You were only a few feet away when you realized everyone was watching you. You stopped moving and froze, was there something on me? Did my dress show too much? As you started to panic you felt a hand on your shoulder. You turned around and was met with a chest. Your eyes slowly followed up to the green glowy eyes of the General. Your mouth slightly parted at the sight. Seeing someone’s bare chest all the time was a blessing but seeing it covered by a classic tux was even sexier.

“Would you like to join me?” His deep voice echoed in your head as you saw him extend his hand to you, palm up. After a few seconds of daydreaming, he raised an eyebrow. The onlookers were waiting in suspense. “If you are too tired, I understand.”

“What? No! Please, I’d love to.” You placed your hand in his and followed his suit to the dancefloor. People scurried out of the way for the two of you.

As you reached the middle, he bowed slightly at you, you curtsy backed and placed your hand in his and the other on his shoulder. Good God, you wanted to explore his body with your hands. Caught in complete euphoria your mind started to wander what other parts of his body felt like. 

He gently engulfed his hand in yours and placed his other on your back. You inwardly giggled at his modesty, Zack and Genesis both had their hands on your waist and here he was, with his hands on your damn back. He glided you around the dance floor, each move mimicked the music, each spun he held you close. All eyes were on you. Although you enjoyed this, you wanted more, he took the lead, but it needed more…. spice. Whether it was the champagne or the intoxicating smell of his aroma you broke the ice.

“Tell me... Sephiroth.” You slowed down your speech in a seductive way. “Are you a good dancer? Or is fighting and cooking your only skills?” The corner of your mouth tugged upwards.

His face looked down at yours and his pupils dilated. He spoke in the same seductive way you did. “No.” You cocked an eyebrow. “I’m a great dancer.” With that he let go of your body, shocked by the loss of heat, he strolled his way to the orchestra and spoke. He made his way back to you as tango music started to play. He pulled you into his body slightly lifting you up, your leg instinctively wrapped around his waist, his hand travelled from your back to your waist just above your behind. 

He gently put you down and pushed your body forward but held onto one hand as your body expanded across the floor, the slit of your dress exposed more leg. You caught of glimpse of his eyes wandering to it. You bite your lip which seemed to entice him even more. Pulling you forward, you and he spun around on the floor, people scooted out of the way, as if they knew a show would be put on. 

He danced you around the floor, reaching from one side to the next. Each powerful move illicit gasps from the crowd. As the tempo picked up so did he. He dipped you down fast, your head relaxed as it bent, exposing your neck. You felt his breath on your skin, his lips ever so lightly trailed upwards. He stopped just above your cleavage.

“What a nice… necklace you have.” The heat from his breath created goosebumps on your skin. He continued his mouth up to the side of your ear.

“Well, Nola…don’t have anything to say?”

Your head slowly moved up, his hand guiding it along. Your eyes moved from his lips to his Adam’s apple back to his eyes. Ignoring his attempt to make you flustered, you spoke. “Has anyone ever told you how enchantingly sexy your eyes are?” You wanted to make him flustered instead. 

His pupils constricted and dilated again as he pulled you back up, he brought his hand to lift your leg and wrap around his body, he grunted as your pelvis hit his. His hand travelled up to your thigh, his touch made you hot, you tightened the grip on your hooked leg. He finally spoke in a hoarse soft voice “No, only you.”

You continued your dance with the General, phasing out the background audience, to where it was just the two of you. You thought of nothing else other than the strong hands that guided you. Your body was glued to his, each muscle that tensed you felt, each breath exhaled you felt, his eyes never leaving yours. He soon stopped and bowed his head, you came back into reality and realized the music stopped, you looked around and everyone was clapping. You curtsy the General and turned to the orchestra and applauded them.

The General turned his body once more to look at you, his lustful eyes watching you carefully. 

“I think I need some air.” Your voice was timid and shy. 

“I’ll escort you.” He held out his arm, you grabbed it and squeezed with all your strength, this feeling was making your legs feel like jelly. He looked down at you, too afraid to meet his contact, he let his other hand rest on top of yours, as if to reassure you ‘I got you.’

Making your way to the exit, you looked to your left and saw Zack standing up with the other 1st , he winked at you, making you blush so you winked back before exiting the room.  
________________________________________________________________________________________________  
The outside air was chilly but refreshing, your senses were on overdrive. You walked to a bench in the terrace before sitting down. Breathing in and out, filling your lungs with the air, you finally looked up at the stars. 

You looked to your right and saw the General staring at you. The corner of his mouth lifted.

“Thank you for the dance. I apologize if I got carried away.”

“No need to apologize Sephiroth.” You smiled at him. “I have to confess… I usually would never dance with anyone alone on the dance floor like that, too many prying judging eyes, but with you.” You grabbed his hand. “It felt like we were the only two in the universe.” 

He smiled as you spoke and pulled at your hand, you slid over, his arm wrapped around your shoulder as you leaned your head on his side. You didn’t mind that he never replied, thinking it was for the best, you didn’t need two confessions in one night. Who knows where that would lead? 

As the moonlight shined down, you felt relaxed, but your body ached from the heels and moving so much. You pulled away from the General and stood up facing him. His mouth was open to say something, but you beat him to the punch.

“I think I’m going to head home now.”

“May I walk you home?” He stood up towering over you.

“I would like that very much, but I need to grab my purse and say goodbye to Zack.” You started to walk away when he came up beside you and wrapped your arm around his.

You made your way back inside, it seemed everyone was watching you both, people whispered as you walked by, but you chose to ignore them. As you grabbed your purse Zack ran to you and swung his arm on top of your shoulder pulling you close. 

“That was freaking incredible Nola! You should have seen the two of you. So many girls here are going to be jealous of you.”

“Don’t remind me….. But seriously did I look okay?”

“You looked hot!” You blushed at Zack’s comment and were about to playful punch him when someone cleared their throat behind you. You and Zack both turned around to see the General holding out his hand for you.

“Zack, Sephir-the General is going to walk me home, will you be okay here alone?”

Zack looked over his shoulder and waved to the table full of girls a few rows down. “Yea I think I’ll be okay.” He quickly kissed your cheek and took off running.   
______________________________________________________________________________________________  
As you approached your apartment door, the General finally releasing his grip on you, you turned around to bid him goodbye.

“Thank you for tonight, I had a really lovely time.”

“As did I, Nola”

The way his eyes sparkled, how his hair swayed softly from one side to the next and how incredibly gorgeous he looked, made you take a step closer to the General, lift up your hand and with your index finger curled it towards you, signaling for him to lean down. As he obediently listened, you put both hands on his shoulders to stabilize yourself and kissed one side of his cheek then to the other, both dangerously close to the sides of his mouth. Pulling back, you could see the General displaying the same lustful eyes as before.

“Goodnight Sephiroth.”

“Goodnight Nola.”


	11. Chapter 11

You woke up feeling better than you have ever felt in the past few months. Although your feet were still sore from the ball that happened on the weekend, you couldn’t explain the relief you’ve been feeling. Your hand touched your mom’s necklace that laid around your neck, you haven’t taken it off since the dance. It may sound silly, but you felt that the necklace brought you closer to your parents. 

You got ready for the day. Putting on a black pencil skirt, a light pink blouse and black flats, made your coffee and left for work. You’ve been daydreaming about the General nonstop. Each memory made your body ache for his touch, wondering if you left the same impact?   
_____________________________________________________________________________________________  
About halfway through the day, you felt a presence in your doorway, glancing up you saw Tseng standing there.

“A word, Nola.” He tilted his head to the side, signaling for you to follow. You got up from your desk and followed him to his office, there he held the door open for you and you sat down in the chair in front of his desk. He came up from behind and sat down in his own chair. You could definitely feel something was off with him today, he seemed more rigid. 

“You looked like you were enjoying yourself at the ball.” He leaned back in his chair, the crinkling of leather filled the room. 

‘Was this a question or a statement?’ You thought. “I was Sir.”

“I did not realize how close you are with the General.” He paused. “Nor did I realize you were in a relationship with him.” He squinted his eyes at you, analyzing your body language. 

“I’m not in a relationship with him.” Though his comment did make you think, what was your relationship with him? It didn’t feel like friends, you weren’t dating, mostly just shameless flirting. 

“It didn’t seem that way at the ball. Especially with the way you were dancing so.... provocatively” His jaw tightened at the thought. 

“Is there a reason for this conversation?” 

“You need to be careful Nola.”

“Sir…. Tseng, I am more than capable of handling myself.” Deciding to come from a softer standpoint instead of it being hostile. “Although I do appreciate your concern, you have been there for me from the start, and my gratitude will never end but I am no longer that scared teenager you first met. I’m a lot stronger today than I have ever been. And yes, I have gone through some shit, but I realized that I can’t let that hold me back. I know I’ll still have moments of sadness and darkness but I also know that the future will hold many great memories for me, it will also have people there in my life to help me along the way. Including you and the General” You waited for him to respond.

“I know that you’re no longer that same person when we first met and I do know that you are a lot stronger now, I do see it. But Sephiroth is not someone you want to get involved with. I know with how the General looks, it can be quite intriguing, and many have fallen for that, but under that shell is a monster Nola. You don’t know the acts he’s committed, the murders he’s accomplished, he has more blood on his hands than anyone here.”

“And what about the murders and deaths caused by the Turks? Caused by you? I’ve seen the reports Tseng, it would be quite hypocritical to say you are better.”

He sighed, shaking his head. “I’m not saying we are better, but we also don’t murder entire villages in a blink of an eye.”

You closed your eyes at his comment, trying not to picture the General committing such acts. 

“I know more about the General than you ever will.”

“That may be sir, but I would like to come to my own conclusion.” Shutting the conversation down before it got out of hand, you made a move to stand up until Tseng spoke again.

“There is one more thing we need to discuss. The Vice President is going to Junon for a conference and I will need to attend as well, however I was needed in Nibleheim to retrieve some documents from the Shinra Mansion. I am sending Rude and Reno but knowing their…. Inattentiveness, I would like you to accompany them. I would rather put someone I have confidence in go rather than be uncertain, would this be okay with you?”

“Of course, sir. I understand completely.”

“Good, I know I can count on you. Here’s the dossier for the list of reports we need. It shouldn’t take more than a few hours to gather, but you’ll be staying overnight at the local Inn. Rude and Reno will both pilot the helicopter to take you there. If you have any questions, please let me know.”

You grabbed the report. “Thanks Sir.” You walked to the exit.

“And Nola?”

“Hmm?”

“Please be careful.”

“I will, I’ll have Rude and Reno with me!”

He chuckled and then spoke in a serious tone. “That’s not what I was referring to…”

You nodded your head and left his office. You had to admit, you felt a bit defeated after that conversation, you knew Tseng’s intentions were coming from a good place but to call someone a monster is not right. Although you were excited for your trip! It’s going to be like your first mission! Well second if you count your covert mission with Zack.  
_________________________________________________________________________________________  
Zack quickly dodged the Buster Sword as it came crashing down over him. He ducked once more when Angeal swung, the blade just barely skimming his hair.

“Damn Angeal, are you trying to kill me?!”

He swung again this time Zack held up his own weapon to block. The swords clashed, sparks flew as Zack struggled to plant his feet, and with a hard push, Zack managed to push Angeal a few feet away.

“See Zack, you’re not trying hard enough. You need to not focus so much on dodging and more on gauging what your opponent’s next move is. I can read you like a book. Take 5”

Zack slumped to the floor against the wall, Angeal came to stand near. Seeing this as the perfect opportunity to ask…

“Hey ‘Geal, if I wanted to look at past soldier candidates who didn’t get in, how would I do so?”

Angeal raised an eyebrow. “And why would you need to know that?”

“Uhhhh to see what they did wrong, so I don’t make the same mistakes.”

“Your already in soldier Zack, so clearly you do not need guidance on what not to do.”

‘This may be harder than you thought’ Zack said to himself. 

“True, but I think it’s good initiative to know mistakes and to learn from.”

Angeal eyed Zack for a moment, picking up on the suspicious behavior of his pupil. “Zack, what are you up to?”

Sighing Zack confessed. “I’m trying to find some information regarding the Airbuster.”

“The case has been closed.”

“I know that, but I’m doing some work on the side of my own. I know the case has been said to be a fluke, but my friend and I don’t believe so.”

“You mean Nola?”

“….Yes.”

“I don’t see how this is a productive use of both your time, but I would need to ask the Director for those soldier files.”

“What does Nola need?” Zack and Angeal looked at the entrance of the training room to find Sephiroth making his way over.

“Zack here wants files of past soldier candidates, but I would need to ask the Director for them.”

Sephiroth looked down at the 2nd class soldier and pondered at this information. “You can use my clearance to access the files. Just tell the receptionist I sent you.”

“Really?” Zack perked up.

“Yes.”

“Thanks sir! Uhhhh Angeal are we done for the day?”

“Yes Zack, we can pick up again tomorrow.”

Zack quickly jogged out of the room to the soldier file archive floor. 

Sephiroth turned to his friend who had his arms crossed with a goofy smile on his face.

“What?”

“Oh, nothing Seph, just smiling is all.” Sephiroth still saying nothing Angeal continued. “Seems like you would do anything for Nola, right? I mean the way you danced with her it would be obvious to anyone what your feelings are.”

Sephiroth turned on his heel and continued to leave.

“Oh c’mon Seph! I’ve never seen you like this before!” Angeal jogged after him, the two leaving the training room.  
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________  
You just got off the phone with Zack, he told you the General gave him full access to all soldier files. Although with so many rejections, it would take some time for Zack to read through them. 

You decided it would be best to thank the General personally. So that’s where you were headed currently, walking to his office. Hopefully, this time being there won’t be as intimating for you.

You knocked twice and patiently waited for the go ahead to enter. As you did enter the General stood up immediately upon seeing who was disturbing him. His face seemed to soften as he gazed at you. He gestured with his hand to the chair in front of his desk. You sat down and smiled at him.

“I hope I’m not disturbing; I’ll be quick! I just wanted to say thank you for giving Zack access to the files.”

“It’s no problem at all. Although I do have to know, why do you need them?”

You hesitantly answered him. “We’re just doing a side project on the Airbuster incident, and before you say the case was closed why bother, I feel that Shinra closed the case too soon.” 

He put his chin on his hand that rested on top his desk. His eyes never blinking. “Well, if you need anything, let me know.”

“Thank you, I really appreciate that….. I was afraid you would tell me it’s a waste of time or something.” You laughed nervously. 

“Never. I understand that sometimes you need to uncover the truth yourself. To put your mind at ease.”

“Yes! Exactly!” A relief washed over you to hear those words. The last thing you needed was the General to think your idea was stupid. Your demeanor seemed to change almost instantly. How could Tseng call this man a monster? He helped you regardless, he didn’t think what you were doing was pointless and he seemed to be there when you needed it the most. You got up from the chair, said thank you again and made your way to the door. However, you stopped and addressed him with your back still to him. 

“You know, some people have called you heartless and cold, or even a monster, but I don’t think they know you, know the real you.” As you turned around, he was already there, looming over you, you were somewhat getting used to his quietness. 

“Oh? And what is your opinion of me?” That same playful attitude was coming out again.

“I think your actually a caring man. Someone who would protect those to no end. To put his life in danger to save someone. Your very intuitive as well, but I think I’ve only scratched the surface with you, I would need more time of course.” You played with him back, enjoying the dance once again.

His hand came up and caressed the side of your face. “Do you really want to know more? Are you not afraid of uncovering a ‘monster’?”

“I don’t think I’ll find one.”

“Only one way to find out Nola.” Your name rolled off his tongue. “But I’ll ask you again, are you sure you want to know?”

“Mhm.” Was all you could muster up.

He walked around you, his boots barely making a noise as you closed your eyes. His hand dragged from your face, down your neck, over your collarbone and rested on your shoulder. He stood behind you, you felt the coldness of his buckles through your thin blouse, his hot breath trickled down your hair.

“How do you think I became the General for Shinra?” He purred. “Was it from being soft? From being nice? Or was it from the bloodlust that is engraved into me? From the mako injections that can make me snap a person’s neck in a split second. I know my victim’s next move before it comes to their mind. Death follows me wherever I go, and maybe I crave it, maybe I lust for it. So, tell me do you still think I’m no monster?” 

You let out the air you were holding in, turned around and faced him. His eyes watched you carefully, analyzing you as if you were a target. “Death follows everyone around, no one can escape it’s grasp. We all crave the unknown, crave the danger in life, knowing very well the consequences that follow are tragic. It doesn’t make one a monster, it makes you human. The only thing that matters in this life is making a difference, allowing yourself to fall into darkness in order to find the truth is a selfless act.”

“And what do you know of darkness? I see nothing but light from you.”

You shook your head. “Oh Sephiroth.” You now reached up and caressed his face. “I know darkness just as much as you….. I was there when my parents died in a car crash, I saw it happen, I heard them give their last breaths. I crawled from the burning car to escape my own death, helpless I laid there and cried. That shadow has followed me from Mideel to Midgar. It keeps me company through all horrible events in my life, but now. Now I see the truth, I feel the truth. And I’m no longer afraid to allow that darkness in my life, knowing very well I can banish it in a blink of an eye.” Your hand travelled over his heart and rested over the thumping organ. “Sometimes we get so used to the pain that it becomes a part of living, but it’s not. I look at you and I can see the same darkness I carry, but I also see light. I see happiness and freedom. I see no monster before me Sephiroth, just someone who needs guidance.”

And just like that his mouth came crashing down on yours. His lips molded to your lips. His hands were on either side of your face. You grabbed onto his lapels in fear of collapsing from the strength he possessed. He angled your head, allowing him to taste more of you. Your heart felt as if it would beat right out of your chest. He pushed you against the wall, his hands travelled down the side of your body, gliding over your waist to your hips, you lifted yours to around his neck. Pulling him closer, he groaned as your cold fingers touched him.

He pulled away slightly, rested his forehead on yours. His voice was laced with want and need when he spoke. “I would go to the end of the planet for you. Where have you been hiding all my life?”

A soft moan left your lips as you replied. “Waiting.”

“Well, I now found you.” He kissed your forehead once, not removing his lips as he confessed. “And I’m never letting go.”

You realized in his confession that he’d been struggling too, waiting for someone to guide him. Much like how your parents have guided you, he needed that. And you were more than happy to provide.

The feelings you were experiencing was like being born all over again. His jealousy towards Zack, his protectiveness from Landin, were all just part of his darkness, he was acting from that, acting as if he were in a war. And maybe your words finally spoke to something inside him. He kissed with such passion, kissed like it was the end of everything. 

“Are you available this Saturday?” He broke the silence.

“Yes?”

“Good. I’d like to take you out.”

You spoke through your smile. “I’d like that very much.”

He let go of your body, allowing you to leave. Your hands were trembling when you made your way back to your office. You could still taste him on your lips. Could still smell his aroma. 

Tseng was wrong, he wasn’t a monster…. He was just like me.


	12. Chapter 12

Why were you in such a good mood? Why did it feel like you were floating above the ground? Was it because you finally kissed the General? Hell yea it was! And you were going on a date soon with him! Things sure have been moving in the right direction. Mentally you were a lot better and now this.

You must have typed and retyped an email three times before pushing your chair away from your computer to take a break. How could you even focus on boring stuff like this when you were in complete la la land.

A vibration on your desk broke you out of your daydream, glancing down you saw ‘Sephiroth’ pop up on your phone. Taking a deep breath in, you answered.

“Hello?”

“Hello Nola, I hope I’m not interrupting you?”

“Oh God no.”

“Great. I wanted to let you know, I'll be emailing you soon for details on proper attire and times for our date."

“I look forward to it.”

“Excellent. Enjoy the rest of your day Nola.”

“I will, you as well.”

You hung up the phone and slumped down into your chair. Proper attire? What was he planning? You weren’t one for surprises, but you would say yes to anything with him.  
______________________________________________________________________________________________________  
Finishing the rest of your workday seemed to fly by so fast. All you could think about was what the General had planned. Would it be some fancy dinner? You hoped not. Maybe you were going on a hike? Nah that doesn’t seem like him. What could it be??

“And what has got you in such deep thought about?”

You looked up and saw Zack standing outside your apartment, leaning against the wall with one eyebrow raised at you.

“That, my good friend is a secret.” You tilted your head up away from Zack as you unlocked your door.

“Fine, I guess I won’t tell you what I found out, it being a secret and all.” He mimicked you, turning his head away.

Your head shot towards him in an instant, knowing he probably found something from the soldier files.

“Okay, I’ll tell you mine if you tell me yours?” These little games you and Zack played were always fun, as if you wouldn’t tell each other anyways.

“Deal!” He stuck his hand out and you shook.

“Alright come in.” You nodded your head inside for him to enter.

He made his way over to your fridge, grabbed a bottle of water for you both and sat down in your living room. You were both comfortable enough now to not ask permission to raid each other’s fridges. 

Zack tossed a bottle at you, as you sat down beside him. “So, are you going to tell me what your secret is?”

“Hmmmm, my secret is a certain girl has a date with a certain General this weekend.” You tried oh so hard to hold back your smile, but it couldn’t be contained.

“No freaking way! When? How?” He asked practically bouncing up and down on your couch.

“It happened after you got permission for the soldier files. I went to his office to thank him, we talked, and he kissed me.” You bit your lip, holding back a girly squeal.

“Holy shit Nola. I did not think this day would come for the General. I mean I knew he had some sort of admiration towards you, the way he looks at you alone would prove that. But damn! He kissed you!”

“I know! I was so surprised! But here we are!”

“It’s good to see you so happy Nola.” He softly smiled at you.

“Thanks Zack. Now tell me what you found out!”

“Well, there are a lot of people who did not get into soldier, but I’m narrowing it down to people who left on a bad note, people who were kicked out and people who have a volatile personality. It will take some time but it’s what I’m doing after training and my missions.”

“That’s great! I know it will take time, but I really do appreciate it. Oh! Speaking of missions! Tseng has me going with Reno and Rude to retrieve some documents soon. Kinda like my own mission!”

“And your comfortable doing this? With everything going on?”

“I am a bit nervous of course, but I had so much fun with our secret mission that I thought why not? I’ll be careful in case your worried.”

“I know you’ll be careful, just don’t leave their side.”

“I won’t Zack, I promise you.”

“Good. So, what exactly are you doing this Saturday with Sephiroth? I don’t think I’ve ever seen him date before or do anything outside of Shinra before.”

“I have no clue, he said he will let me know what I should wear but everything else is a surprise.”

“Oh man, this should be good.” He started to laugh.

“Hey! I’m sure he has something planned that resembles dating activities.” You joined Zack in with his laughter.

Now that you thought about it, what did Sephiroth know about dating….

Shortly after Zack left, you received a message from the one and only. 

Nola,

Please see below for the itinerary for Saturday:

1pm: Meet at Level 49 Training Room on Soldier floor  
Attire will be provided ahead of time

3pm: Meet at entrance of Shinra Garage  
Please wear civilian clothes

4:30pm- onward: Surprise

-Sephiroth

You must have reread his message multiple times before breaking out into a fit of laughter. His message was so formal! But what did you expect from him? Though meeting in the training room did scare you a bit, I hope he doesn’t challenge me or something.  
__________________________________________________________________________________________________  
Saturday came quicker than you thought. You received a box from the General yesterday. It revealed an all-black outfit, the shirt was long sleeved and skintight. The pants were a cross between the thickness of jeans but the stretchiness of yoga pants. And he even included black combat boots. It all fit you perfectly. Don’t know how he managed to get your size right but what occupied your mind the most as you looked in the mirror at your reflection wearing the outfit was what he had planned. You joked about him challenging you but now looking at everything put together, it seemed like he might.

Your stomach was in knots, you kept looking at the clock every five seconds, planning on when you should depart. It wouldn’t take you long to get there but maybe being early was best. Zack did tell you how punctual the General was, and the last thing you wanted to do was be rude.

Sighing you looked at the clock one more time before making your way to the main building, 30 min prior to 1pm.

As you turned the corner on floor 49, you could see the General leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, he was dressed in his 1st class uniform. Yupp, he was definitely going to obliterate you today. His eyes shot up as you got closer, a small smile formed on his lips as his eyes went from the top of your head to your boots. Probably admiring his gift.

“I see everything fits perfectly.”

“Yes, it does. Thank you. So, what are we doing here?” You looked around seeing no one else there.

He turned around to face the wall and punched in a code to gain access to the training room. As the door hissed opened, he waved his hand forward. Taking the hint, you walked in. You stopped in the middle of the room; the ceiling was massive! It looked like it kept going up and up, not to mention the sheer size of the room too. You turned around only to jump back as Sephiroth was standing right behind you.

He spoke in a voice you have not heard before. “You should never turn your back on an enemy.”

Your heart quickened in pace. “I didn’t realize you were my enemy.”

The left side of his mouth moved upward ever so slightly. “No, I’m not. But I brought you here to teach you some defensive positions. I know it may seem strange, however I know you wanted to know some fighting techniques from Rude. So why not learn from the best?”

“The best huh? Gosh Sephiroth, I heard you were smug, but I never had the pleasure of hearing it…. Sir.” Oh yes, you were going to have fun today.

He took a few steps forward until he was right in front of you. Towering over you until you were covered in his shadow. His pupils dilated and you knew he was having just as much fun in the banter.

“Aren’t you forgetting something subordinate?” His eyebrow raised up.

“My apologies Sir.” You straighten your shoulders and gave him a salute. But you couldn’t hold back the laugh that escaped your lips. He tilted his head up, his chin above you as his eyes gazed downward, never blinking. You held his stare, not blinking yourself. A few seconds of silence passed; you tried your best to not break but you could hear your heartbeat in your ears. The anticipation was killing you.

You gave up and looked away. “Finnnnne! You win.”

He let out an adorable chuckle, his hand reached out to touch the side of your face but knowing this was coming and he wouldn’t expect it, you pulled his hand down, making him eye level with you, side dashed around his crouched form, still holding his arm, bent it behind his back and kicked the back of his knee, making his knees cave and fall to the ground. You leaned in over top of him now and whispered in his ear.

“Hmmm maybe I win.” You quickly let go of his hand and backed away, knowing you were in deep shit.

He got up, kept his back to you. Waiting once again in anticipation for what would happen next. And in a blink of an eye, he moved with such speed, was standing behind you. One arm wrapped around your waist the other grasping the side of your neck, forcing you to tilt to one side. He leaned down, his breath tickling you, his lips hovered over the pulsing vein, you closed your eyes waiting for him to make his move.

“Beginner’s luck, I won’t let it happen again.” You knew he let you surprise him. As he let go of your body, your eyes opened to see he was already on the far side of the room. “Shall we begin?”  
_____________________________________________________________________________________________  
The whole training was more of a seductive dance. He did teach you how to remove yourself from someone’s grasp, how to throw a punch and how to block. But you more focused on how his hand would linger on your arm, or when he was behind you, pressing you against his chest, how you could feel everything. You may have purposely rubbed against him, you heard him groan several times, but hey! He was just as bad.

As you wrapped up, he told you go home and change for the rest of the day and night. Bidding you farewell. 

But now you were making your way to the Shinra Garage. Excited to know what would happen next!

He stood there once again looking ever so gorgeous. Standing against a black sporty looking vehicle. He wore black jeans with a dark blue v-neck long sleeve shirt. You decided to wear black leggings with a dark purple long sleeve shirt. Making your way to him, he removed himself from the car side and opened the door for you. You waited for him to get inside before asking where the next stop was. He pulled out of the private garage and into Midgar traffic, he weaved in and out without care. So not only was he an excellent General but his driving skills were impeccable.

“Thanks for teaching me some moves today, it’s actually perfect timing.”

He looked over at you, intrigued with every word. “Oh? How so?”

“Well, I’m actually going on a little mission with Reno and Rude to Nibleheim. Have to retrieve some documents that Tseng is unable to do. Not that I’m expecting danger but it’s always nice to be prepared.”

You saw his one hand tighten on the steering wheel. “And why must they send you? Are Reno and Rude not capable of such a task?”

“Yea, that’s exactly right.” You laughed. “Anyways, what’s our next destination?”

His hand loosened and you could feel the anxiety leaving the car as he spoke. “You’ll see.”

You soon drove out of Midgar. It seemed like you were on the road for a couple of hours, but you were able to talk the whole time, avoiding any awkward silences. He even told you of some stories during his time on the field, leaving out any gory details of course. But he reminisced about times he hung with Angeal and Genesis, how they would goof around. Always saying how Angeal would act like the parent in situations where him and Genesis got out of hand. He even mentioned times with Zack where they got along and joked.

He soon drove off the main road, onto a dirt path. Pulling up over a hill, your eyes widened at such a beautiful sight. He stopped the car and you both got out. You walked a few steps, inhaling the sweet fresh air, gazing at the beautiful green lush rolling hills. Forests covered either side of the area. A small river was cutting a hill in half, the gentle sounds reminded you of home. Closing your eyes, you let the breeze dance with your hair. Turning around you saw Sephiroth leaning against the front of the vehicle watching you. You went to walk to him when he stopped you with his words.

“Please stay, you look absolutely…. Breathtaking.”

You obediently stood there. Watching him watch you. He soon got off the vehicle and made his way to you. His hand brushed against your cheek, as you closed your eyes, enjoying the softness of his caress. His words were just above a whisper. “How can someone so beautiful and kind want to be around someone like me?”

Your sorrow eyes opened, you brought his hand into both yours, held it close to your heart that was beating fast. “Feel my heart beating?” He nodded. “I know you can hear it beat faster when I’m around you.” He nodded once again. “That’s what you do to me. You make my heartbeat fast, you make me feel things I have never felt before. You have shown me a side of yourself that I don’t think many have seen or know.” He continued to nod. “But each time something new happens I discover a different side to you, a softer side, a gentle side. You don’t have to question yourself with me Sephiroth.”

He pulled his hand back and circled his arms around your body. He planted a kiss on top of your head. The wind danced around you both, his hair falling over your body, shielding you from the world. You couldn’t be happier even if you tried. He soon spoke breaking the serene silence.

“Are you hungry?”

“Mhm.” Was all you could manage.

“Good. Be right back, I brought us some food.” He let go of you, already missing his sweet embrace. He strolled over to the car and opened the trunk; he removed a few containers and a blanket. He placed everything down on the grass, directly you to sit down.

The sun was setting behind, the soft hues of yellow and orange splayed over your faces as you enjoyed the food he brought. Before you knew it, the sun was set and the sky was covered in darkness. The stars and moon lite you up.

“I know how much you enjoy star gazing, so I brought you here where you can see more stars than in the city.” Showing again, another side of himself. 

“Thank you, you don’t know how much this means to me.”

Looking over at him, you admired how majestic he looked. His silver hair was illuminated by the moon’s rays, his mako green eyes reflected the night sky, his slit pupils moved from one star to the next. Your eyes trailed to his body, his well-defined chest was slightly exposed in his shirt, it was lifted a bit near his hips, exposing his pale abdomen. His strong muscular arms were held behind his head. Everything about him had your body on fire, every time he looked at you it made you quiver with excitement. This whole day was perfect, and you didn’t think you can hold in this sensation for him much longer.

Daring to be bold, you sat up and looked down at him, his eyes showed confusion at your movement, but before he could ask you anything, you slid over top of his laying body, you straddled him, your hands moved over his lower abdomen up to his chest, feeling the muscle definition from years of training. The heat was now pooling below. His hands settled on each hip bone, his grip tightening as you lowered your lips to his, until you finally touched. 

Your hands rested around his neck as you devoured your mouth on his. His sweet taste on your lips. Kissing his upper lip than biting his lower, your body had a mind of its own as your hips moved in a rocking motion on him. He groaned with every movement. His tongue licked upwards over your lips, asking for permission. You obliged and slightly opened your mouth for him. His tongue invaded you, swirled with yours. The heat pooling more and more….You needed more.

You ground your hips downward over his groin. You could feel what was happening to his body, his excitement was hard to hide. But you kept going. Soft moans escaped your mouth when you lifted it from his. His hands grabbed the sides of your face, bringing your lips down to his once more. He trailed one hand down the side of your body, first slightly touching the side of your breast, his warm fingers lifted your shirt and gripped your skin. It then trailed down to your waist, guiding your rocking motion. Forcing you to move faster and harder on him. Your excitement was just as high as his, knowing he could feel the heat coming from you. 

He pushed you over, gently but firmly forcing your body to be under his. He hovered over top of you, his hands grabbed your wrists and forced them above your head. His eyes showing intense lust, his pupils dilated, his breathing was uneven. You wanted him to take you right there and then, you were in complete euphoria. You saw him swallow before speaking.

“It’s getting late…. I should take you home.”

You let out a ragged breath before replying. “Yea, I guess it is.”

He got off your body and instructed you to wait in the car while he packed everything up. As you waited for him, you craved for him. You wanted to keep going, you wanted everything from him. Your body wanted him. These passionate moments set fire to you; you’ve never been more attracted to someone in your entire life. You licked your lips, still able to taste him.

He smiled as he came into the car, unable to take your eyes off his mouth, you looked away. Blushing. You heard him chuckle ever so softly as he started the car and left the luscious countryside.


	13. Chapter 13

If there was one thing you were certain of, it was you were falling madly in love with the General. All thoughts that once were dark, thoughts that were about death and about everything bad in your life were soon replaced with love, with laughter and with happiness. The General did not only contribute to these feelings but so did Zack. It seemed everything was on the right path intended for you. Heck even work was better!

Even now, as you stared at the piles of paperwork on your desk, you still had a smile on your face. Zack has been giving small updates, letting you know how much files he’s gone through. You couldn’t wait for him to show you what he’s discovered so far. Picking up a few files that you’ve already submitted, you made your way to the archive room. A room which once mimicked your mood, now appeared to be the polar opposite.

A small vibration in your pocket notified you of a message. Pulling open your phone you saw it was Sephiroth. You couldn’t help but smile at his message.

Thinking of you….

-Sephiroth

‘What a dork’ You thought.

“Opps! I’m sorry, I wasn’t paying attention.” You managed to walk into the only person occupying the hallway outside your office.

The young man turned around, his hazel eyes surprised by your clumsiness. “It’s all good.” He smiled. Something about his smile seemed familiar. He looked a bit lost as well.

“Is there anything I can help you with? You seem a tad lost.” You gave him a coy smile.

“Yes, I need help finding someone.”

“No problem, tell me their name and I’ll point you in the right direction.”

“I’m looking for Nola.”

“Well, aint this perfect! I’m Nola!” You stuck out your hand, he shook it and replied.

“I’m James. Sorry, this may seem strange but you knew my brother Marcus.”

“Marcus?” Confused, you don’t remember meeting a Marcus.

He looked down and shook his head. “Sorry, he probably went by O’Connor.”

The smile vanished from your face as your heart sank. “Oh my gosh, I’m so stupid, of course O’Connor wouldn’t be his first name.”

He chuckled at you. “Don’t worry about it.” He smiled. There was that smile again, the smile you knew. But as his smile didn’t disappear, you felt sick to your stomach. Tears started to form in your eyes. Quickly wiping them away before he could see.

“It’s okay, I didn’t mean to make you cry. My only intention was to meet you. Meet the last person to see my brother alive.”

And that’s what made you break. You covered your face with your hands as your body trembled. Your shoulders slumped over. A warm body covered yours, your face was soon crushed up against a chest. You kept your hands in front of you as his wrapped around your shoulders. Your tears slowed down until they were just dots in the corners of your eyes. You removed yourself from his embrace. As he stepped back, you saw his eyes widen and the look he gave almost seemed terrified. Your eyebrows creased together as you turned around to see what he saw. A magnificent terrifying General was standing there, Masamune in hand.

“What did you do to her.” He took a step closer to you, his eyes never leaving James’. Your mouth seemed to have stopped working, seeing Masamune this close was even terrifying for you, the blade reflected the light, casting small shiny orbs around you.

He took another step, stepping now in front of you, now between you and James. James’ mouth opened to say something but nothing came. Coming to your senses, you finally spoke. “S-Sephiroth, please put that thing away.” You pointed to his blade. “He hasn’t done anything to me.”

“No? Then why are you crying? And why was he touching you.” He spoke through his teeth, almost grinding with each word spoken. He took another step towards James. James took a step back.

“Please Sephiroth, this is—” But the General cut you off.

“I don’t care who he is.” His arm reached out and grabbed James by the collar, hulling the man forward. But this was too much for you to handle. You moved around Sephiroth and stood beside James. Trying your best to force Sephiroth to make eye contact with you instead. Your hands touched his, trying your best to extract his hands from James’ collar, of course with no luck.

“Let him go Sephiroth!” You raised your voice, which granted the feline eyes to slither to you, but they did not soften as you hoped they would. “This is James! He’s O’Connor’s brother!”

Suddenly Sephiroth was yanked back, releasing James. You reached for him to ensure he was okay. He put up his hands as to say he was. You whispered sorry to him under your breath. You now faced the General, standing in front of James in case something would happen.

You saw Angeal standing behind the General, worry was on his face as he looked at you. He whispered something to Sephiroth, soon Masamune vanished into thin air. Angeal took a step forward to you and James.

“Nola, is everything okay?” His eyes went from you to James.

You looked back at James then to Angeal. “Yes, we’re fine. This is James O’Connor, Marcus’s brother.” You stepped aside to unblock the view.

“Ah, apologies for my friend. Marcus was an excellent Turk. I had the pleasure of joining him for missions.”

“Thank you for your kind words.”

Angeal faced you once more.

“Excuse us Angeal, James did you want to talk in my office?” You pointed to your door and James left to enter. As you followed you grabbed Angeal by the arm and whispered. “Thank you Angeal.” He placed his hand on yours and tapped.  
____________________________________________________________________________________________________  
“I’m so sorry James!” You practically yelled when you shut your office door.

“It’s alright Nola, I wasn’t expecting to meet the elite General when I came in today.”

“It’s definitely not alright!”

“Nola, I promise you it’s okay. From how it looked, I was hugging you while you cried, I’m sure any boyfriend would do the same…. Minus the sword of course.”

“Oh, he’s not-were not-I mean I don’t know….it’s complicated.”

James chuckled at your fumble of words. “No need to explain, I understand.”

As you sat down at your desk, you indicated James to sit down as well. “So, why did you want to see me today?”

“Well, when we received the news that Marcus died during the job, it wasn’t a compete shock to us. We all knew what he did and how dangerous it could be. But when we found out that it was an accident and that someone actually survived, I couldn’t help myself. I just had to know….”

“Had to know what?” You cautiously spoke. 

“I wanted to know how Marcus was during his last moments. I understand if you do not wish to relive it, I can’t imagine the turmoil you’ve been through.”

“O’Connor was…. Marcus was happy when I was there. He was very polite to me. I was there organizing files. When the Airbuster started to malfunction, Marcus was there to protect me. He saved me from being hurt, if it weren’t for him pulling me to a safe spot in the room, I’m not sure I would be here.”

“And how did you manage to escape?”

You sighed. “Well actually it was that silver haired man who saved me at the last moment.”

“I see.”

“James, I want you to know that I know Shinra closed the case, but right now, a friend and I are doing our own investigation. To find the truth. I don’t know if that means anything to you, but I hope it provides some comfort.”

“Your too kind to be doing so Nola. But please, don’t get too caught up in this. The way you acted when you heard his name just goes to show how invested you are in this. And I’m sure my family, who do appreciate your help, would much rather know that my brother’s life was lost in order for you to live yours the best way possible.”

“Thank you, that means a lot to me.”

He smiled at you, breaking your heart once more. “You have given me what I came here for. To know that my brother lost his life protecting someone, especially protecting someone who has a good soul.”

You stood up and walked over to him to hug him. Squeezing him tight. “I’m sorry for your loss, Marcus was a spectacular Turk, and I owe him a lot.”

“You can pay him back but letting go this guilt, I see it in your eyes Nola.”

You let go of his body and took a step back. You wiped the tears away from your eyes once again. “I would love to hear stories about Marcus, to know him better, if that’s okay with you?”

“I would love nothing more.” He took out a card that had his number and passed it to you. You in turn wrote yours on a piece of paper for him.

He held up the piece of paper and spoke. “Until then Nola.”

“Until then James.” You held up your hand and gave a small wave as he exited the room.  
________________________________________________________________________________________________  
When you arrived home after the emotionally draining day, you wanted nothing more than to soak in your tub. Unfortunately, your phone hasn’t stopped ringing. You already had three missed calls from Sephiroth. You weren’t ignoring him as you were in a meeting with Tseng, discussing your mission coming up in a few days, but you also weren’t racing to phone him back. After what happened today, you needed some space to think.

Finally, after soaking in your tub, you decided to call Sephiroth. It only rang once before he picked up.

“Hey.”

“Nola, why have you been ignoring my calls?” A tinge of hurt resonated in his voice. 

“I haven’t, I had a long meeting today with Tseng, to discuss my travels coming up.”

“Can I come over? To talk?”

“Sephiroth, I’m really tired right now. I don’t know why you acted the way you did today, but it was totally inappropriate.”

No response.

“Look, the next few days will be busy for me, I have to prepare for my mission with Reno and Rude. We can talk after I get back okay?”

“Of course. I…. I only wanted to make sure you weren’t hurt. I’m sorry if I caused you disturbance today. Please be safe, and we can talk when you return.” He hung up before you could reply. 

Maybe it was for the best. His actions were uncalled for. And you needed to concentrate on succeeding during your first mission Tseng has ever given you. Everything else could wait. Even if it took all your strength not to race over to the General’s apartment to resolve this. You still couldn't believe of all people he had to get jealous over, it had to be James. You thought you were heading in the right direction but once again, life has other plans. For just this one time, you wanted things to run smoothly, no complications.... But little did you know, that time wouldn't happen for a while.


	14. Chapter 14

“Yo dollface, you already to go?” Reno turned around in his co-pilot seat, grinning from ear to ear at you. 

You looked around, made sure you had your overnight bag, your phone, and of course your list of documents you needed to retrieve. After doing a full check for the third time you looked up at Reno and replied. “Yupp! Let’s go.” 

You buckled yourself in and glanced to the left out the window and saw Tseng standing there. He decided to walk you out, knowing it was your first time going on a ‘mission’, you told him not to make a big deal considering he had to prepare himself to Junon, but he insisted, he always insisted. 

“Alright partner!” Reno clapped Rude on the back. “Let’s go!” He made a twirl with his fingers in the air. 

As Rude prepared the helicopter for take off, pressing what seemed to be a dozen buttons, you clasped your hands together tightly, turning your knuckles white. This was the first time flying in a helicopter and the butterflies in your stomach could not be contained. 

“Don’t worry so much chicky, Rude is the second-best pilot around.”

You raised an eyebrow. “Second best? Who’s the first?”

“Me of course.” He winked at you, but his face made a scrunched-up expression. “Oh shit, I guess I have to watch what I call you now right?”

“Why? You never cared before?” You joked back; you didn’t really mind him calling you the quirky names.

“WHY?! Unless I want to get decapitated by Shinra’s poster boy, I’ll keep my comments to a minimum!”

“We’re not official or anything Reno.”

“Didn’t seem that way at the ball.” He quipped.

You rolled your eyes. You really didn’t want to think about the General at this moment. Things didn’t exactly end the greatest the last time you spoke. You could have talked in out then, but you just were too stubborn to do so. Maybe some time will allow him to figure out his mistake.  
__________________________________________________________________________________________________  
You peered out the window once more, enjoying the beautiful view from up top. Soon Midgar became a dot in the distance, as the ground was now covered with water. This was quite relaxing, you tuned out the boys, who once again were bickering about nonsense. The humming of the helicopter blades was a soothing sound, almost lulling you to sleep. The bird jerked and your eyes opened fast, you instinctually gripped the seat belt. The sky around seemed to become darker, the ocean reflecting the sky was now dark and black.

“Uhh Reno? I thought you said today was going to be clear skies?”

He turned around to face you. “Don’t worry Nola, this happens all the time, the weather changes but in two shakes it’ll be back to normal.” You wanted to believe him, but when he glanced over at Rude, they seemed to have had a conversation with their eyes.

Another jerk hit the helicopter, this time it was followed with a crack of lightning. Then another hit, and another, each followed with a blue strike from the sky. The cockpit lights soon lite up, a few were flashing as Rude tried to steady the machine. It wasn’t until a red glow caught your eye outside that you knew you were in trouble. It came faster and faster.

“Uhhhhh guys! What the hell---” Before you could finish your sentence the red ball smashed into the blades, causing all alarms to set off inside. The aircraft jerked to the left.

“What the fuck was that!” Reno screamed.

Another red ball hit, causing the helicopter to spin. Reno looked out the window, his eyes widened as he saw a massive fire ball being casted towards them. He climbed to the back to you, undid your seatbelt and grabbed your shoulders tight. “We have to jump, I don’t know what the fuck that is but it’s not good! Rude! Hurry up we need to jump!”

“I’m right behind you guys! I’ll steady it for as long as I can, just jump!” Rude yelled over the alarms.

“Do you know how to swim?!” Reno asked as he opened the door, the wind smashed against your face, you could smell the smoke from the fires above.

“Yea.” You barely managed to get out.

“Good.” Reno grabbed your body up, held your hand, glanced back at Rude. “See you down there buddy!” And with that he jumped out pulling you along with him. You braced yourself for impact, knowing very well the water would be freezing. You pulled your arm in, put your legs together and closed your eyes. In mere seconds you hit the water. Reno let go of your hand. The water was bone chilling cold when you dove in. You swam up to the surface and looked around, the waves crashed into your face, blocking you from seeing anything. You yelled for Reno’s name, but nothing came. Soon a splash to your right caught your attention. Rude appeared from below.

“Where’s Reno?” He screamed, as his eyes scanned all around, panic plastered on his face. 

“I don’t know! He was right here with me!” You glanced around once more, fearing the worst, you started to panic. It wasn’t until a hand touched your arm that you were met with the red-haired man. “Oh Reno, thank the Gods!”

“Can’t get rid of me that qui—” He stopped mid sentence and looked up. His face showed panic and fear. He lunged for you fast, pulling your body into the water below. You were down several feet, your eyes opened as you could see above the surface a black mass coming down. Your heart stopped as you forced yourself to swim downward, but it was too late. Part of the helicopter crashed into the water. A metal piece sliced the side of your arm, you yelled, filling your mouth with water. You needed air and fast! Reno helped you swim up. When you broke the surface Rude yelled for everyone to follow him.

You swam for what seemed for miles until you hit a sandy beach. Your arm was in agony. You glanced down and saw a gash on the right bicep. It was deep but could have been worse. When you reached land, you sank to the ground. Your knees hit the sandy surface as you clutched your wound. Reno came running to you.

“Holy shit! We need to bandage you up!”

You looked up at Reno, his face had minor cuts, his suit was torn in places. When your eyes met Rude, he was in the same shape. “Thanks for back there, you saved me from probably dying.” You addressed Reno with a slight chuckle. 

He sank down to the ground with you, ripped a piece of your sweater and wrapped it tightly around your wound. His sorrow eyes met yours when he spoke. “We just need to stop the bleeding, it won’t fix anything but it’s the best we can do, do you need help walking?”

“No, I should be okay.” You rose with him, lifting your arm to inspect your wound. You looked around at your surroundings, the sky was still black, lightning bolts still shot from the sky. There was no sign of civilization, your phone was wrecked, you had no supplies. What the hell just happened out there?  
________________________________________________________________________________________________  
Tseng was in his office, wrapping up some last-minute reports before leaving with the Vice President to Junon. He wasn’t pleased to be going to yet another conference, but the VP insisted he come along. He managed to shut down his computer when his office door swung open. He glanced up, ready to reprimand whoever entered without asking. One of the young assistants spoke before Tseng could begin his tirade.

“Sir! We have an issue!”

“Whatever it is, it can wait.” He waved off the man, as he walked towards him.

“Sir!! We just got a mayday message from Rude! He was cut off before we could respond but the radio went offline somewhere over the ocean to Nibleheim!”

Tseng stopped and regarded the man, trying his best to keep his composure. “What the hell happened?”

“We don’t know sir, it was cut off before we could respond, we think they may have been shot down.”

Tseng’s heart sank. Nola. All he could think about was Nola.

He threw his suitcase on the ground and made his way to the communication centre. His legs carried him fast through the hallways, straight for the elevator as the young man followed dutifully. Once in, Tseng pressed the floor button harder than necessary. Unfortunately, the elevator hit the floor just before his exit. He groaned to himself, seeing who entered.

“Tseng! How’s it going??” Zack yelped. The General did not acknowledge him at all.

“Gentlemen.” Tseng nodded. The last thing he needed right now was anyone else knowing what happened, he could solve this problem on his own. He just needed to reach the floor and he could figure out what the hell happened. As the doors opened Tseng left the elevator, thinking he was in the clear…..

“Sir, I know Nola was with them, hopefully everyone is okay.”

Fuck. Was all Tseng thought.

A large hand stopped the elevator doors from closing. The General practically slammed the doors to the sides, rattling the entire device as he stepped forward toward him.

“Why would Nola not be okay?” Sephiroth spoke as his eyes narrowed down. Zack joined him, peering around the General.

“That’s none of your concern General. It involves my team.” Tseng sternly snapped back.

“It does concern me when Nola is involved. Did something happen on her departure?”

Tseng turned on his heel and began to walk away from the General. He made it four steps before being slammed up against the wall. “Answer me Turk!” He growled.

“Uhhh General, let’s take a moment here.” Zack spoke quietly from behind. 

“Shut it Zack!” Zack cowered back, knowing very well not to mess with him while he’s angry.

Tseng stayed completely still as he spoke, holding his eye contact with the General. “I said, it doesn’t concern you.”

“And I said it does concern me.” He gripped the Turk’s suit tighter, pressing him harder into the wall. “She is mine, now tell me what happened.”

Tseng laughed. “Yours? Does she know that?”

Zack stepped forward this time, before things could get worse. “Tseng, we can help. We all want the same thing so please tell us what happened.”

Tseng looked over at Zack, then back at the General, he smiled, he wanted to add fuel to the fire. “We got a mayday message from Rude. Their radio went offline before we could respond. We think they were shot down over the ocean…. Now let go of me, Soldier.”

The General finally released his grip. Tseng straighten out his suit before making his way to the communication centre. Sephiroth, Zack and the young man hot on his trail.  
___________________________________________________________________________________________________  
The guys decided to make their way inland, it was already dusk and staying out in the open was not ideal for what monsters and creatures surrounded the area. As Rude started a fire, you gathered wood to keep close so overnight no one would have to leave the campsite. When you made it back to the site, Reno came over and inspected your wound once more.

“It’s still bleeding, but not as much as before. We just have to keep replacing the fabric, otherwise it’ll become soaked.”

“Are you in pain Nola?” Rude looked up from the fire.

“No, it stings but I’m okay.” You lied, you weren’t okay, your arm was killing you!

You sat down on the tree trunk that Rude provided and warmed your body up, half your clothes hung around to dry, keeping the bare minimum on. “So, what are we gonna do now? We don’t have any supplies with us.”

“Well, we can gather some fruit from around the area, water from the stream over the hill but as for right now it’s best to just get through the night, tomorrow we’ll come up with a plan.” Seems like Rude is the leader of the group you joked to yourself.

Reno came to sit beside you. “Nola, were going to take shifts, I think it’s best if you sleep though, with your wound we don’t want you to strain yourself okay?”

You shook your head knowing very well you could handle it. “I can take shifts Reno, I said I’m fine.”

He sighed. Knowing you were stubborn. “Tomorrow okay? We can decide tomorrow night if your able to take a shift.”

“Tomorrow? Do you think we’ll be here for several days??”

“It’s best to think of worst-case scenario right now. Rude sent a mayday message back to Midgar but they will still need to track us down, figure out where the hell we are. In the meantime Nola…” He handed you a 9mm gun. “You need to protect yourself as well, in case something happens to either of us. Rude has a gun, I have my electro-mag rod, you need a weapon too, do you know how to shoot?”

You nodded your head, taking the gun into your hands.

“Good. Just move this to release the safety, point and shoot.”

You nodded again.

Once your clothes were dry, you went to lay down beside the fire. Reno decided to take first shift as you and Rude drifted to sleep. All you could think about was Sephiroth, imagining how much he’s probably freaking out right now…. Oh! Poor Tseng, he’s gonna have to deal with him too.

Hopefully, he’ll come for you. You touched your arm, flinching at the pain. You changed the dressing before going to sleep, your arm was losing more blood than what you admitted to the guys, you just couldn’t afford to have them put effort into your wound when the main issue was getting home. You wanted to be strong, not some damsel in distress all the time. You decided it was best to lie to the guys going forward, you had to pretend to be okay, no matter how much pain you were in or how much blood you were losing. You closed your eyes and kept your thoughts on the General, wishing he was here to warm your body with his, wrapping his arms around your delicate form, kissing softly on your neck.


	15. Chapter 15

Sunlight blinded you as it was peaking between the tree branches that hovered above your body. You groaned as you dug your good arm on the ground behind your back, pushing yourself in a seated position. You rubbed your eyes, adjusting to your surroundings. A stick snapped behind you, you turned your head to see Reno making his way to you. He slumped to the ground, handed you some berries and went to work on your arm. He tore more fabric from your sweater, luckily you had a long sleeve shirt underneath. Reno continued the dressing on your sore wound.

“Still bleeding huh?” You could hear the anxious breath he released while talking to you.

“Yea, but it’s okay Reno, I’m fine.”

He eyed you for a moment, trying to see if you were lying. “There’s a river just over there.” He pointed behind the two of you. “Rude should be there, go drink some water to hydrate.” He got up and helped you to your feet as well.

You made your way to the river. Under different circumstances this place would be quite peaceful. The river was clear, it flowed freely for as far as you could see. You bent down beside Rude, cupped your hands in the water and drank. You gulped down five handfuls, basking in the purity of the water. Rude looked over at you and laughed.

“Never seen you drink so fast before Nola.” He smiled. “How’s the arm?”

“It’s good, I mean it’s still bleeding but I’m okay.” You smiled weakly at him.

He got up from the stream and headed back to camp, you followed his lead. You all sat around the now burnt-out fire, not speaking. Rude decided to break the silence.

“I think it’s best if we stay here, closest to where we crashed. If they received the mayday then they’ll try their best to locate our location.”

“Agreed partner. Nola, you good with that?” Reno turned his head to you.

“Yea, of course. What about food? Cause berries won’t be enough.”

“I know how to hunt chicky, I’ll catch us some small animals to roast.” Reno winked.

You shook your head and replied. “Okay, then yea, I’m good staying here.”

“Then it’s settled.” Rude confirmed.

The rest of the morning and afternoon consisted of doing “chores”, your task was to gather firewood to last throughout the night, along with picking some berries. Reno was off hunting and Rude was scoping out the perimeter for any monsters. Your arm started to hurt more and more as you gathered wood. You decided to make your way back to camp instead of straining your arm more.

A small growl came from your left. You stopped walking and listened again. The growl came again, this time it sounded closer. You couldn’t see anything in the bushes, so you carefully and slowly put the firewood on the ground. Stood up and pulled the gun from your hip, you unhinged the safety and pointed the weapon towards the sound. You couldn’t call for help as it would probably trigger the beast lurking. Your hand shook as you tried to steady your aim.

You then saw the bush move as a wererat came prowling out. The ugly creature stopped moving as it came out fully. His teeth snarled as it got on it’s hind legs, it’s sharp claws curled down. Ugly little thing, with it’s big pointy ears. You pointed the gun at the animal, waiting for him to make the first move. You showed it no fear. As it bent back you knew it was reading himself to charge, so you pulled the trigger just as it lunged. The bullet pierced the beast right through it’s head, it laid on the ground, blood trickling around it’s deceased form.

The gunshot rang in your ear, you tried to focus but it was no use. A hand came to rest on your shoulder. You jumped, but the hand took the gun away before you turned fully to face whoever touched you. Reno stood there, looking more proud than upset.

“Damn girl! Killer aim!” His words left his mouth in a fog. 

“Huh?” You squinted your eyes at Reno.

“Oh, first time hearing one go off eh?” He grabbed your hand, taking you back to camp. He sat you down on the tree trunk, crouched in front of you. After a few minutes, the ringing went away. You looked at Reno and smiled, you gave a thumbs up.

“If I knew you had such an aim, I wouldn’t have called you all those names.” He joked.

You laughed along with him, as Rude came up and joined in as well. Who knew you could aim so well?  
______________________________________________________________________________________________________

“You need to stop pacing Sephiroth.” Angeal warned his friend as they waited outside the communication room with Zack. Just ten minutes earlier Tseng kicked them all out, stating they were “distracting” the Turk and his team.

“I don’t see why we are not involved. Nola could be in danger or wounded right now and that pretentious Turk thinks he can kick me out? I’m a General for God’s sake.” Sephiroth practically roared.

“Maybe it’s because you called him incompetent at least a dozen times.” Zack peeped up from beside Angeal.

Sephiroth glared at his direction, making the puppy cower.

“Don’t let your emotions cloud your judgment Sephiroth.”

“My “emotions” are not clouded Angeal.” He gritted through his teeth. 

The door to the communication room opened, as Tseng stepped out to speak. “We have a proximity of where they crashed, but it’s between here and the other side where Costa Del Sol. We have not decided which side to search first.”

Sephiroth pushed past Tseng into the room and made his way to the table where the map was out. His eyes scanned the map, his hands rested on the edge of the table, gripping it with such force. “We will search the other side.”

“I disagree.”

‘Course you do’ Sephiroth thought to himself. “Tseng, I have commanded more missions than you, I have a 100% success rate for all battles I’ve completed. I say we search the other side, the current would have taken them opposite of Midgar. Now do you want to argue with that?”

Tseng went quiet as he came up beside the General, peering down at the map. After a long pause he finally addressed him. “Fine. But this is my team, I will lead everyone accordingly. We will search the other side.” He moved so his back was to everyone, facing the General. Sephiroth raised an eyebrow as he glowered down. Tseng spoke under his breath, so no one would hear. “If you challenge me again General, I will not hesitate to dismiss you from this search party, are we clear?”

The General clenched the table harder, never has he been dismissed by a lower ranking man, however before he could release the insult resting on his tongue he responded. “Yes.”

Tseng addressed the team, giving everyone instructions on what their task was. Everyone scrambled once Tseng dismissed them, leaving to gather first aid supplies, weapons and prepping the helicopters to take off. Sephiroth stood off to the side as Zack came up beside him.

“She’ll be okay General, she always is.” Zack offered a small smile.

The General, choosing not to acknowledge let out a ‘hmphf!’ before stalking off out of the room.  
___________________________________________________________________________________________

The fire crackled, sending ambers to the ground by your feet. You were walking over to the firewood pile when stars blinded your vision. You knelt down to steady yourself, touching the dirt as it was captured under your nails. Towards the end of the night, you’ve been experiencing more and more dizzy spells. You peered around at Rude and Reno’s sleeping forms to make sure they didn’t see. You kept telling them you were fine, but truthfully your wound was too deep to heal on it’s own. You need stitches to close it up. Reno did allow you to take a shift while they slept. Although the fresh water gave you boosts of energy, the small roasted animals and berries weren’t giving you enough. 

Gradually you got up and made your way again. As you bent down to pick some logs up a small gust of wind lifted your hair. Your eyes trailed over the darkened tree line. Shadows from the trees played tricks on your eyes, a bush looked like a monster, small critter eyes glowed as they stared at you. You touched your hip, realizing you left the gun at camp. Maybe you were being paranoid, you clearly lost more blood than what you wanted to admit, your dizzy spells made it harder to concentrate.

But then, something else grabbed your attention, as you tried to focus and move forward, your vison blurred causing you to stumble to the ground. Your knees crashed into the soft soil, the fire logs rolled out of your hands. You moved the hair that fell onto your face.

“You don’t look so good.”

Your eyes darted upwards, a tall figure was standing next to a tree, hidden by the shadows. You rubbed your eyes, trying to focus even more.

“You lost a lot of blood. Blood loss can cause hallucinations.” The shadow taunted. 

“What?” You managed to speak up. Am I hallucinating?

The figure came into view, walked over to your crouched form and gently grabbed your arm to raise you up. He brushed the hair from your face. You knew this man…. But where did you know him from? You stepped back away from him in fear he would hurt you.

“There’s no need to be afraid, I’m not even here.” His smile made you sick to your stomach. His eyes took you in from head to toe and back again. 

“How-how do I know your not real?”

He ignored your question. “It’s a shame about your crash landing, although I am surprised you made it out.” He stepped closer to you.

You didn’t move, you feared a sudden movement would cause another dizzy spell.

“Oh Nola, how defenseless you are.” He was now standing two steps away from you. His eyes devouring your form. 

“Please don’t hurt me.” Tears formed in your eyes.

“Awe, I already told you I’m not here. It’s unfortunate you’re just a pawn in all this.” He bent down; his breath trickled on your face as he came to level with you. “Your shift is almost over, you best be making your way back sweetie.” He lifted his head as his eyes peered over your head. You turned around to see what he was staring at and when you came back, he was gone. Completely vanished.

You rubbed your eyes again, shaking your head slowly, am I losing my mind?

You walked back to camp and laid a few logs on the fire. It was time to wake up Rude. You crouched by his sleeping body and gently shook his arm. He came to pretty fast.

“How did it go?” He whispered.

“Nothing happened.” You smiled as you got up and went over to your spot. You turned your back away, carefully wiped a tear that escaped your eye. You didn’t know how much more you could take; your arm was losing too much blood and now you were hallucinating men. But where did I know him from, you had it on the tip of my tongue. Unfortunately sleep consumed you before you could unravel the mystery.  
_____________________________________________________________________________________________

The morning rays warmed your cold body when you awoke. Your body ached even worse today. You quickly undressed your bandage and wrapped a new one, the last of the fabric from your sweater. Rude and Reno were talking quietly to one another, so you decided to wash up in the stream.

Taking handfuls of the fresh water, you splashed it upon your face. It washed away the stars that slowly formed once again in your eyes. You had to tell the guys about your condition, you couldn’t be stubborn any longer.

When you made it back to camp, you sat down and addressed them. “Guys, we can’t stay here another night….. I’ve been lying…. My wound isn’t healing, and I think I’m losing too much blood. I-I can’t concentrate anymore.” You confessed, guilt ridden. 

Reno got up first and sat closer to you. He draped his jacket over you and gently rested his arm over your shoulder, pulling you into his body. “Nola, you should have said something sooner.”

You could tell he was upset but he used a softer tone.

“I know and I’m sorry, but I don’t think I can go another day in my condition.”

“Let’s make our way south then, it’s my fault were staying here, we should have left to find a town instead of relying on them coming.” Rude solemnly spoke.

“It’s okay Rude, it’s no one’s fault.” You smiled, in turn he smiled back.

“Okay, let’s go now then, get as much land covered before nightfall.” Reno stood up and helped you to your feet as well. You gave back his jacket since it was already warm out. Rude took lead as you followed behind and Reno behind you. Making your way through the thick bush was easier than it seemed.

You travelled well into the afternoon. Your feet were starting to ache. More than once you had to tell them to stop to steady yourself. Reno took it upon himself to loop his arm in yours, you rested your head on his arm several times when the stars blinded you. As you made it on top of a hill, you unhooked your arm from Reno and plopped to the ground. The cool soft grass felt nice, especially since it gave your feet a break.

For as far as you could see it was nothing but land, no town, no houses, no people. Rude read the look on your face when he spoke. “It’s okay, were bound to reach something by nightfall.” You gave him a thumbs up.

You continued your way, currently walking between two massive rolling hills. The view was spectacular. It was as if, every shade of green created all came together here. The air was crisp and clean, no noise disturbed the peacefulness.

Wait… why was there no noise?

“Hey guys, does it seem quieter than usual right now?”

Rude stopped walking, holding up his hand. Reno placed a hand on your shoulder and with his finger held to his lips, told you to be quiet. You held your breath in suspense. Waiting to see what Rude heard.

Suddenly a tunnel of wind gusted down, you shielded your eyes from the dust that swept up. The force of the wind was enough to slid you back a foot. Reno’s hand pushed on your back to steady you. A loud screech travelled in the canyon. When you looked up you saw a cerulean drake hover above the three of you. The beast was absolutely magnificent, his colors were vibrant but the sheer size of it, scared you to pieces.

Rude began to shoot at the beast, striking it’s body with a few bullets. It screeched again before diving down to the ground. You quickly took cover to lay as close as you could to the ground. It came swooping down over you, you swear you could feel it’s wings flap on your back.

When it came back to hover above, it dashed once more to the ground, towards you. You had no time to think when Reno pushed your body away, you rolled onto the ground, yelping in pain as you landed on your wound. You looked up to see Reno being flung a few feet in the air, crashing into the hard rock surface. You ran over to him, clutching your arm, blood seeping through the fabric. You flung yourself over him, pulling his back to see his face. He was out cold.

You shook his body and slapped his face to wake him up but nothing happened.

“Nola!” Rude screamed.

Your eyes searched for the beast in the air, it’s eyes locked onto yours, you grabbed the gun from your hip and began to empty the clip. Each bullet hit the beast, it’s wings faltered, forcing it to lower more to the ground. Rude took his chance and continued to fire at it. But when his clip was empty, it was as if the drake knew.

It prepared itself once more to dive, you shielded your body over Reno’s, it screeched, and you knew what was coming next. You could hear Rude yelling in the background but all you wanted to do was protect Reno. You prepared for the pain.

The drake roared, you could feel the heat of it’s breath on your body. When no pain came, you tuned around and were faced with a sliver of a blade. The blade was yanked out of the drake’s heart, causing the now dead beast to fall to the ground. Behind it stood the General.

“Sephiroth!” You yelled with enthusiasm.

In a flash he was kneeled in front of you. He softly smiled at you, relief was shining in his eyes. Until his eyes furrowed when they travelled to your wounded arm. He went to touch when you stopped him.

“Please help Reno.”

He shook his head and continued to reach for you. When you pushed his hand away you gave him a stern look. “Please Sephiroth.”

He huffed and assessed Reno. His hands felt his body, feeling for any broken bones, when he concluded he was fine, he retrieved a vile from his pocket and slipped it down Reno’s throat. Within seconds Reno awoke. He coughed a little bit, raising himself into the sitting position. He looked at you, then at Sephiroth before nodding and getting up to see Rude.

“Check her wound General, she’s been bleeding since the crash.” He walked away.

The General then made eye contact with you, his beautiful green eyes matched the current surroundings. Your heart was beating fast at his sight. You lifted your hand to touch the side of his face, he grabbed your hand and slowly brought it down. He twisted your arm, so your wound was facing up. He removed the bandage slowly, you cringed at the feeling. He softly whispered ‘sorry’ to you. He soon engulfed your body in a green hue, your eyes watched as your wound closed up. It was just incredible what materia could do. He released your arm, you examined it yourself, rubbing your hand over the once wound. Completely astonished.

“Thank you.” You gazed up at him. 

“It seems I’m always coming to your rescue.” He raised an eyebrow at you. Already back into the teasing games.

“Are you getting bored of it yet?”

“I don’t think I’ll ever be bored with you.” He stood up, his glorious stance towering over you, he held out a hand, you wrapped your fingers around his palm as he lifted you up. His other hand came around to cup the side of your face, you basked in the warmth of his touch, even through his gloves. He broke you out of your trance when he spoke. “Come, let’s go.”

You followed his lead to the helicopter that was parked just through the mountain pass. You didn’t let go of his hand the whole way there. You really didn’t care who saw, or what anyone thought, all you cared about was he was here, once again, for you.

Tseng was waiting next to the helicopter, his smile lite up when you came closer, but it faltered when he looked down at your linked hands with the General. You didn’t see it, but the General gave a cocky smile to the Turk.

“Tseng!”

“Nola, I’m glad to see your okay.” His eyes moved to your cut sleeve that was now covered in dry blood. Before he could ask you answered for him.

“It’s okay. I was hurt but Sephiroth healed me.” You glanced up at the tall man who outshined everyone here, his silver hair blowing in the wind. His eyes moved down towards you and winked. You bite your lip, trying to conceal your squeal.

“Well, then shall we?” Tseng did his best to ignore the sight before him. He gestured with his hand for you to enter. The General lifted his hand up to help you onboard. You took a seat next to the window, Sephiroth came to sit beside you, he grabbed your hand once more. Tseng sat opposite.

You were probably in flight for a few minutes when your eyes began to feel heavy. You yawned a few times before the General took notice.

“Why don’t you rest your eyes, I’ll wake you when were close.”

You nodded like a defeated child, you looked at his shoulder and tapped his pauldron. With no other words needed, he unsnapped his shoulder guards, placed them on the seat, and you then rested your head on his body. You fell asleep instantly.

The General watched as your breathing became heavier, indicating you were in a deep sleep. He titled his head, to rest on yours. He inhaled your scent, content at last within your company. He has never felt this way before, no one has ever pushed his limits, and you somehow pushed every limit he had without even raising a weapon. This moment was too perfect.

“It won’t last.” Tseng spoke, his hands clenched together, watching the pair. The General decided to ignore his remark, which made Tseng continue. “The infatuation will die, as it’s done in the past. And when she comes to her senses, she’ll see you for who you are. Not some knight in shinning armor coming to her rescue, but a murderer, something you always will be.”

The General lifted his head off of yours and chuckled. “Your attachment to her is one-sided Turk. You and I are the same, bound by Shinra, killing many without any guilt. You think so highly of yourself, but I’m afraid we are the same….. only I have Nola and you don’t.”

Tseng tried to speak up as he straighten his posture but the General silenced him with one glare. “Do not wake her up, or I will make you regret it.” He threatened. 

Tseng closed his mouth and glared back. The two not speaking for the rest of the flight.


	16. Chapter 16

The nurse smiled at you as she removed the IV from your arm. You were given several pints of blood since coming to the infirmary. Although Sephiroth healed your wound, you still needed medical attention. You were here for a couple of days, but today you were finally being released. You were more than happy to go home, sleep in your own bed and have a nice hot bath.

“Is someone coming to pick you up sweetie?” She smiled down at you.

“I think so, if not I can walk on my own. Thank you for your help though, you’ve been very gentle with me.”

She touched your arm and made her way out of your room.

You retrieved some clothes from the chair that was in the corner of the room, got dressed and sat back down to tie up your shoes.

The nurse exited the room and gasped as she was startled by the General leaning up against the wall. His long silver hair covered his face, he tilted his head to the nurse, eyes boring into hers.

“Is everything okay with her?” He asked, a hint of concern was in his voice.

The nurse regarded the General. “Uhhh yes General. Her wound is healed thanks to you, and she’s been given enough blood to recover and go home. Are you picking her up?”

“Yes. Thank you.”

“Certainly sir.” The nurse walked by, disappearing down the hallway.

The General’s attention was now focused on two people making their way down the hallway past the nurse. Tseng came up first, nodded and entered Nola’s room without hesitation. Reno however slowed his pace, until Tseng was no longer an ear shot away.

“Afternoon General. Here to pick up Nola?”

“Yes…. Thank you for taking care of her, I’m sure she would have been way worse if it weren’t for you.”

Surprised by an actual compliment, Reno took a moment before responding. “She’s strong, a lot stronger than I thought.... don’t break her heart General, or we’ll have problems.” Reno eyed Sephiroth, dramatically cracking his knuckles for added affect. 

Sephiroth’s mouth lifted ever so slightly. “I’ll take your word for it, Turk.”

Reno smiled back before entering Nola’s room with the General.

Tseng was currently hugging Nola and saying sweet words in her ear. “I’m sorry you had to go through this Nola. I shouldn’t have sent you, but I’m glad you’re doing well.”

“Don’t worry about it Tseng. It’s no one’s fault, I’m just happy I’m going home.” Your eyes went to Reno. You released yourself from Tseng and came to hug Reno. You quietly thanked him.

“Don’t mention it kid.” He hugged you back.

When you let go of Reno, you made your way to Sephiroth and craned your neck to speak to him. “Ready to go?”

He nodded and opened the door for you.  
_____________________________________________________________________________________________

While you walked into the elevator, you went to push your floor number when Sephiroth stopped you, and pushed his floor number instead. 

You looked up at him, raising your eyebrows. “Why are we going to your floor?”

“You’ll be staying with me.” He stated nonchalantly.

“Sephiroth, I need to go home and change and such. I’ll be fine on my own.”

He turned his body to face you. “Please Nola…I…I need you near me… Please let me have this.”

Truthfully, you were happy with his request, it made you happy to know how strong his feelings were towards you. I mean you already knew, but this just reinforced it, plus you had to talk about how things ended between the two of you before you left.

“Okay.” Was all you said.

When you entered his apartment, your first conclusion was this place was massive! Clearly you had to be a General in order to get the best view ever! You stood near the entrance, not really sure what to do.

“I’ve asked Zack to retrieve some things from your apartment. He should be here in an hour.”

You nodded.

“Is everything okay?”

Hesitatively you answered. “Everything is fine, I just don’t know what to do…”

“If your thinking about the sleeping arrangements, I will be sleeping in the guest room, you can have my bedroom as there is an en suite.”

“You have a guest bedroom?!”

He chuckled. “Indeed.”

“Umm can I use your bathroom? I would very much like to wash the hospital smell from me.”

“Of course, follow me.”

He led you down a hallway, the walls were a dark navy blue, no photos, just wall art. He stood waiting for you in his bedroom. As you walked in, you were amazed. His furniture was all a deep dark wood, his bed was positioned against the wall, perfectly made with its silky navy sheets. Everything was immaculate, just like his office. He cleared his throat and you saw him standing by another door.

He moved out of the way as you entered the bathroom. The place was completely white, white marble floors lined the ground and walls. He had double sinks, his shower was in one corner and a soaker tub was just opposite. It was spectacular.

“Would you like me to start a shower for you?” He asked.

You turned around and pointed behind to the soaker tub.

He smiled. “Or the bath?”

You nodded happily.

He walked past you to the tub and began to fill it up. You asked him to make it hot, and so he did. He got up while the water ran to bring back some towels. He showed you where the essentials where and told you he would close the bedroom door so when you were done, you would be in privacy.

He left a few minutes after giving you instructions and you made your way to the rub. You sunk in, the water heating up your body. The sheer size of this tub could fit four people. You rested for a bit before using his shampoo and conditioner. It smelt just like him. His body wash was divine, it left your skin smooth and smelling of coconuts.

When you were done, you saw a bag on the bed. You opened it up to find some stuff that Zack must have dropped by with. You threw on some short shorts with a baggy t-shirt that ran past your waist. You brushed your hair and put it into a French braid. You made sure to leave everything the way it was, it wasn’t that difficult since you, yourself were a tidy person.

You found him sitting on his couch staring outside, it looked like he also got dressed since he was wearing jeans and a t-shirt. He made eye contact with you as you got closer. You took a seat on the chair near him.

You didn’t speak for a few moments; I think the two of you were trying to decide what to say. When finally, he started.

“I need to apologize for my behavior from before. I shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions. I did not know the situation you were in and I assumed.”

You waited for him to continue.

“I’m sorry Nola. When I saw you crying, I just wanted to protect you. I hope you can forgive me.”

You got up from the chair and walked to him, you sat down on his lap, moving your legs so they hung over his leg with your hands around his neck. “I forgive you Sephiroth. I know your intentions were good. Just know that I would never do anything to jeopardize our relationship. But please in the future don’t think the worst.”

“I’ll try.” He rested his hands around your body.

“And I’m sorry for not talking this out before, I shouldn’t have ignored you.”

“You have nothing to apologize for, but I appreciate it.” He brought your face down for a kiss.

The same hungry feeling came through. His soft lips danced with yours. He positioned you to sit with both legs on either side of his body. Your hands weaved through his hair, he removed his lips and placed hot kisses on your neck. Sucking and biting in between. You couldn’t help the moans that escaped your mouth. His hands gripped your back tighter. This felt like a dream…. A dream…. Wait a dream!

You pushed away slightly but he didn’t budge, he continued his assault on your neck. “Wait Sephiroth.” You breathed. 

He stopped, his hungry eyes wanting more.

“I just thought of something, something I saw at night.”

He didn’t speak, instead his grip got tighter and tighter on you.

“One night, while I was still losing a lot of blood, I saw a man.”

“You’re thinking of other men right now?” He joked.

You hit his arm playfully. “This is serious, I thought it was a hallucination, but I remember where I saw this man from. The ball! I danced with him! He kinda creeped me out and he creeped me out again. Can you call Tseng and ask him to pull the tapes from the ball, and tell him to call Zack too. Zack should have narrowed down his search so he’ll be able to help.”

He continued to kiss your neck while talking. “But I was enjoying this too much.” He whined. 

“Pleeeease?”

He stopped and made eye contact with you. “And how could I say no to that?” He grabbed his phone from his pocket and waited for Tseng to answer.

As he was explaining what to do to Tseng, you moved some hair away from his neck, and very slowly licked upwards. His free hand came around to your waist and squeezed. You bent down again and continued to kiss and lick his neck. Your hips rolled on top of him. He squeezed even harder but you didn’t care. You continued teasing and tasting him as he spoke to Tseng, but when the call ended you backed away and eyed him with an innocent look.

“Oh, don’t even try to act innocent right now.”

“Who me?” You shrugged.

He shook his head. “Why don’t I make you some food? Tseng says he will contact Zack and pull the tapes.”

“Sounds good, thank you.”

He kissed you quickly on the mouth, before lifting you off him with ease. You made yourself busy, snooping around his place while he cooked some food. When dinner was ready, you joined him in his dining room while he served you. You were quite impressed with his cooking skills; he made a tasty carbonara that just absolutely tasted delicious. After you were both done, you helped him clean up. He tried to push you away, but you insisted.

You sat on his couch for a few hours, talking about what happened after your crash, he listened so intently, intrigued with every moment you described, hanging onto every word. You loved this side of him, the side of being kind and caring. Your heart melted around him, knowing how much you loved this man. Despite his demeanor around others, the rumours around his life, his involvement with the war, you still wanted to be…. His.


	17. Chapter 17

“If I knew you were such a good cook, I would have come over sooner!” You laughed as you took a bite of a pancake. Sephiroth turned around from the stove and gave you wink.

You felt so good this morning, Sephiroth’s bed was like sleeping on a cloud. You didn't even want to leave this morning, you were too busy inhaling his scent that lingered on his pillows and bed sheets. The only thing missing was him. You took a sip of your coffee, daydreaming about the General while staring at his back.

**Knock knock**

Sephiroth made his way to the door, opening to reveal Zack, who without hesitation brushed passed the General right to you.

He sat down next to you at the table, stole your fork and stabbed a piece of pancake, shoving it into his mouth. You snickered at his boldness. “Do you want a sip of my coffee too?” You joked.

Clearly, he was in a playful mood because he grabbed your cup and took a few sips. You continued to laugh. Sephiroth on the other hand watched the whole interaction go down in less than 30 seconds, had no response other than. “Do you want a cup Fair? Or do you wish to share?” His voice held no emotion. 

You eyed him, telling him with your eyes, Zack was just joking around. It seemed to work, since Sephiroth rolled his eyes dramatically before grabbing a cup for Zack. Even when he did mundane things like that, it was still adorable. 

Sephiroth’s phone went off and he excused himself to the other room to answer. You and Zack both watched him disappear before talking.

“Sooooooo, already marking your territory?” Zack bumped your shoulder with his.

“Well duh! I have to make my presence known.” You laughed. “So, did you talk to Tseng about the guy I saw?”

“I did, I think that’s who just called Sephiroth because I know he wants to come over and discuss with everyone what came up.” He glanced back at the room Sephiroth was in before continuing. “But I will tell you quickly, this guy is a total nut job, he—” Zack stopped as he heard the General making his way back.

“Tseng, Angeal and Genesis will be here in a few to discuss what information has come up.”

You nodded and decided to help Sephiroth clean up the dishes.  
___________________________________________________________________________________________  
Everyone was gathered in Sephiroth’s living room. As Tseng began to speak.

“The man from the ball that Nola danced with was a 3rd class soldier Derek Rover. He was expelled from the soldier program over many infractions, his list of offenses was stealing, aggressive behavior towards staff and colleagues, assault of a staff member, blatant disrespect of upper management and lying. The list continues…”

Tseng held up a photo to show everyone, when you saw it, you definitely knew he was the man you not only danced with but saw at night.

Zack chimed in. “We also have security footage of him stealing mastered materia and weapons from the soldier weaponry rooms. Don’t know how that’s possible, would he not have all access revoked once he was kicked out?”

Genesis walked over and grabbed the photo from Tseng. “I don’t remember this fool, but he won’t forget me once I get my hands on him.” Genesis' fists were clenching and unclenching as he spoke with such venom. 

“I remember him.” Angeal spoke up. “I was there when he slapped the receptionist. I believe he assaulted her because she denied him access to the materia storage room. He was written up as well on many occasions for beating up his fellow 3rd class soldier classmates. I was the one who initially brought his dismissal to the Director.”

“Did he say anything to you Nola?”

“Nothing out of the ordinary, he asked me if I was a Turk at the ball and when I saw him after the crash, he just kept saying I was hallucinating him and that I was a pawn in all this.”

Sephiroth watched you for a moment before speaking up. “Do we have any idea where he is? And if he’s been back here?”

Tseng replied. “We have no idea where he is, and he hasn’t been here since stealing the mastered materia. Which is what he used to take down the helicopter.”

“So, what’s the plan then?” Zack questioned, the same thought as you.

“For now, the Turks will monitor the cameras here in case he returns. All missions from now on involving anyone in this room will need to be on high alert. Nola, you will need to be careful as well, he’s made it apparent he’s interested in you.” Tseng's eyes softened as he looked your way.

“Well, good job to you and Zack, Nola. I’m sure without you two, finding this man and his reasoning would probably have taken longer.” Angeal congratulated you both.

You smiled at Angeal before winking at Zack.

Everyone stayed around until the evening and talked some more about what to do. But soon Angeal, Zack and Genesis left, leaving you alone with the General and your boss.

“May I have a word with Nola…. Privately.” Tseng demanded, as his eyes were glued to the General.

Without a word, Sephiroth got up and walked away. Tseng turned to you when he knew it was just the two of you. 

“Nola, are you sure your okay to stay here? I can set up some Turks to watch outside your room if you’re nervous.”

“It’s okay Tseng, it’s only for a few days until things are calmer.” You could tell he didn’t like your answer, but he wasn’t going to push it.

“If anything changes, or if you feel…. Uncomfortable, please call me.”

“Don’t worry Tseng, I will, but I’ll be fine here.” You tapped his hand.

He got up from his seat, you walked with him to the door, he turned around and kissed the top of your head before leaving, you closed the door behind him and leaned up against it.

“He has feelings for you.”

You looked up to see Sephiroth standing there, arms crossed over his chest. 

“No, he doesn’t, he’s just protective of me.” You walked slowly over to him, his eyes followed your every movement. 

He shook his head, his hair swaying from one side to the next. “Nola… He does, it looks like I have some competition.” A sly smirk graced his face. 

“Pfft, with you? There’s no competition, I’m all yours.”

His mouth was on yours in a flash, kissing you with such force again. His hands moved your face to line with his. His tongue invaded you, swirling around with your own. You gripped his shirt, holding onto dear life. He removed his mouth, kissing your cheek, your eyes, your nose, trailing down your neck. He spoke in between kisses. “Say it again.” He demanded, making your heart skip a beat.

“I’m yours.” You moaned. He pushed you against the wall. His hand travelled underneath your shirt, gripping at your waist, pushing you further into the wall with his body. Your hands locked onto his strong arms, feeling his muscles as they latched on you.

He came back to your mouth, kissing you once more. Licking your lips, nibbling at the top then the bottom. Your nails dug into his skin. He picked you up, holding you with one arm under your bottom as your legs wrapped around his waist, he held you against the wall, continuing his work down your neck once more. You couldn’t hold back the moan that slipped through your uneven breathing.

“Again.” He demanded.

“Oh God Sephiroth, I’m yours!”

He lifted his face off your neck, his lips were swollen. You could feel how much he wanted you, how hard he was. His eyes trailed from yours to your lips, to your neck, to your collarbone, back up to your eyes. “Let me take you Nola, let me have you.” He all but begged.

All you could do was nod with a slight mhm that came out like a moan.

With no other words needed, he carried you to his bedroom. Softly depositing you onto the sheets as he came down with you. His hands were on either side of your face as his lips claimed yours. You opened your legs, allowing him to be nestled between. His hands grabbed the bottom of your shirt and lifted. You arched your back, as he slid your top off. He kissed from your neck, between your breasts, down your belly until he reached the top of your pants. He rolled back on his ankles, removing his own shirt. Your heart raced as you saw his full chest, he looked like a statue, with how sculpted he was. Your hands reached for him, touching everything. They travelled over everything, you pulled on his shoulders, ordering him to come down.

He stopped just as his face rested near your breasts, in a few seconds your bra was off, flung across the room. His mouth sucked on your nipples, moving from one breast to the next. You arched your back even more, moaning as his tongue swirled around. His hand slid down your side, hooking underneath the band of your pants, he looked up at you asking for permission with his dilated eyes.

“Please.” Was all you could whisper. He smiled as he undid your pants, removing them completely with your panties. Leaving you fully naked in front of this God. He came back to your face, kissing you feverishly.

“Your so beautiful.” He kissed. “So gorgeous.” Another kiss. “Mine.” He slipped a finger inside your already wet core, making you gasp. He slipped another finger inside. Moving in and out slowly. You bit his shoulder, wanting him to go faster. Taking the hint, he picked up the pace, his fingers pumped inside you. You moaned without a care. He silenced you with his mouth, shoving his tongue inside. You were close and he could feel it. He removed his lips and rested them on your forehead as you climaxed. He slowed down his pace, until he removed his fingers completely. He rolled back again on his ankles, admiring your body. You watched as he brought his fingers to his mouth and licked off each digit. Slowly dragging his tongue, not missing a single spot. It turned you on immensely. Your body was on fire.

Within seconds he had removed the rest of his clothing, carefully lowering himself over you. He brought your legs to rest on either side of his waist. He kissed you tenderly, before inserting himself inside you. You moaned loudly, taking him in fully, he stretched your walls, you dug your nails into his back. He groaned as he continued to push. “Your so tight.” He spoke as he breathed on your neck, sending shivers throughout your body. 

He pulled back a little and pushed further in, this time you completely took him in. He started off slow again, adjusting to you, just as you adjusted to his size. When your moans picked up, so did he. He went faster and faster. Thrusting inside you. You knew he was holding back his strength, fearing he would hurt you, but you needed everything from him.

“Harder, please go harder.” You demanded from him.

He needed nothing more as he obeyed your command. Pounding you into the bed harder and faster, you were coming close, your body was building up. Your hands gripped his arms, and then you released, moaning loud, calling his name, your walls tightened around him, you heard him moan, knowing he was close.

“Make me yours Sephiroth, please make me yours.”

He pumped a few more times before releasing all he had in you. He moaned as he came, spilling inside you, he thrusted a couple more times after, grinding against you. He kissed you again, slowly as his breathing was ragged, he pulled out and crashed beside you. You feared your heart would beat out of your chest. You were sore but everything was perfect. The build up that was happening between the two of you finally released. 

He pulled you close, you formed against his chest with your back, his arms wrapped around you possessively, and you loved it. He kissed the back of your head. No other words were needed to express how you both felt.

As you laid there you felt his heartbeat on your back, slowly lulling you to sleep. The last thing you heard was a sleepy Sephiroth wishing you a 'goodnight love'


	18. Chapter 18

How did your life get to this point? How did you fall so quickly in love with Sephiroth? For weeks since your first night together has been a whirlwind of experiences. You’ve gone on several dates with the General, from going out to dinner, to cooking at his place to venturing out to new country sides. Each time was better than the last. He became more comfortable around you, opening up slowly about his life. It took time but you would wait forever for him.

At first, it was only a handful that knew you were together but eventually news like this was hard to keep hidden at Shinra. It didn’t help that the General constantly teased and taunted you every chance he got. He pushed the boundaries whenever you two were alone. You were in the elevator last week, when he walked in, waited until the doors closed before pouncing on you. He kissed you until you were breathless.

And now, you were currently sitting on his desk, with his head between your legs. Your dress rested just below your breasts, as your hands dug into the desk.

“Oh God Sephiroth… just like…. that.” You moaned, trying your best to keep your voice low.

His hands held your thighs apart, his tongue licked your inner lips, dragging slowly then expertly swirling around your clit. He sucked gently before pushing his tongue inside you. Your hips rocked with his motions, trying to push deeper and deeper. You were close…. the pressure was building up once again, you threw back your head as you climaxed. He removed his tongue and slowly licked up, bringing you down from your high, continuous licking everything you gave.

He stood up and grabbed your face, shoving his tongue inside your mouth. You didn’t know when he undid his pants, but you felt his hardness, burning on your inner thigh. He moved his mouth to your neck.

“God Nola, I need you.” He breathed before slipping inside you.

You gasped at his size, still not used to it.

His callused hands latched onto your hips as he drove into you, pushing his desk further away with each thrust. Soft groans came from his soft lips beside your ear. As he climaxed and released inside you his hand made it’s way to your clit, rubbing it, making you squirm and tighten on him, it turn he groaned, music to your ears. He moved himself out, helped you off the desk before getting dressed. Kissing the top of your head at the end. 

You looked around on the ground… “Hey, where are my panties?” You continued to look around before glancing up at Sephiroth, smiling victoriously as he held your panties in his hand. You went to reach for them when he extended his arm up, clearly out of your reach.

“Hey! Give them back!” You laughed as you punched him in his ribs, it made no impact as he didn’t even flinch.

“I think I’ll keep these today.” He responded.

“You want me to walk around all day with no panties?” You twirled a piece of hair between your fingers.

He tucked your panties in his pocket before reaching you. “Yes…" His dilated eyes trailed your body, making you shiver with excitement. 

You blushed; no man has ever wanted you this much. “Hmm, then I guess I’ll see you later.” You stood on your tippy toes, kissing him on his mouth, before walking out of his office.  
____________________________________________________________________________________________

Laying down on the bed, your eyes were glued to the nothingness on the ceiling. You quietly looked to your right, seeing Sephiroth, sound asleep. His features were soft, his hair splayed across the pillow, his arms wrapped around you. He was just so handsome. You couldn’t believe you were together.

Moving your eyes back to the ceiling you tried not to think of the last couple of months that seemed to have passed so quickly. There was no indication that Derek was around. Even as everyone went on missions, nothing happened. It was as if he vanished, but you knew that wasn’t the case. When Sephiroth did have to leave, he made sure either Zack, Angeal or Genesis were around to watch you. And if they were all away, he sucked in his pride and had Tseng keep watch. Tseng had no problem with this, but you knew deep down Sephiroth was apprehensive.

Although it was nice to have the protectiveness from Sephiroth, he couldn’t always be there. You needed to do stuff on your own again, you needed to be independent. But what if something happened? You reframed from going shopping alone in fear you would get attacked.

Your heart rate increased, imagining all the horrible things that could happen to you. You didn’t want to live in fear forever. You wiped a tear that slid down your cheek.

“Nola, what’s wrong? I could feel you heart rate increase.”

You gathered yourself before answering. “I’m just thinking about Derek. I don’t get why he hasn’t made an appearance. He tried multiple times to attack us, and now nothing.”

He pulled you, rolling you over so he cradled you in his arms. “I’ll always be here to protect you, you have nothing to worry about.”

“But what if he comes back?”

“He hasn’t been around for months now Nola, he probably gave up.”

You wanted to believe his words, but you knew it wasn’t true. Your gut was telling you that whatever Derek had planned, was far from over. 

“Go back to sleep.” He kissed the back of your neck. You grabbed his hand and brought it to your mouth, kissing it sweetly, before closing your eyes. You wanted to sleep but it never came.  
________________________________________________________________________________________

By the end of the week, you were exhausted, you couldn’t take your mind away from Derek. Even with him not being around terrorizing everyone, he still managed to screw with your mind.

Everyone was currently away on missions, leaving you with four Turks watching your every move. It was getting annoying, this overprotectiveness from everyone was getting on your nerves. Although you enjoyed it from Sephiroth, your confidence in yourself was diminishing. If no one thought you could help yourself, how could you believe so?

You dismissed the Turks who followed you all day, somehow you couldn’t escape the shadows, even with your mental state of mind better, it was now actual shadows following you. As you sat down on your couch, you thought about everything, your mind racing as it went through every situation you’ve gone through. Your heart ached for Sephiroth to come back, come back to you and tell you everything is okay. But dating a General, meant work would always come in between. He couldn’t always be there for you, to help you. You sighed, knowing how much you relied on him, maybe a bit too much now, and he would never stop you, he craved it himself.

Your phone buzzed and you looked at the message.

Why did you dismiss the Turks? You know you need protection. Please Nola, don’t interfere with my commands. I will see you tomorrow.

-Sephiroth

See? It was only minutes ago this happened, and he was already on it. You made your way to your bedroom, not bothering to remove your clothes and fell into the sheets, hoping your exhaustion would force sleep.  
_____________________________________________________________________________________

“Nola, please let me help you. I set up protection detail in order for you to be safe.”

You tired your best not to roll your eyes. “I get that, but I need air to breathe.”

“Are you suffocating?” He questioned, clearly confused.

“No, I don’t mean literally, I meant with everyone following my every move. I can do stuff on my own.”

Sephiroth crossed his arms over his exposed chest. “What if something happens to you? What if I’m not there?”

“And what if something doesn’t happen to me? This can’t go on forever!?”

“Why not?”

“….. you can’t be serious. Of course this can’t go on forever.”

“I will always be here Nola.”

“I know that, but you do leave, and I have to have strangers following me all day? I can’t take it anymore. I just need some space!" You cracked. 

He took a moment before replying. “Space? From me?”

You wanted to say no, you wanted to jump into his arms, but no words came. You couldn’t answer him, fearing what your answer would be.

He took your silence as the worst answer possible. He walked past you, not saying anything else and left your apartment, closing the door with more force than necessary.

You collapsed to the ground, hands buried on your face crying. You stayed there for over an hour before getting up. Once you did though, you wanted to scream at the top of your lungs, you wanted to throw plates against the wall. Instead you picked up the phone.

“Tseng?”

“Nola? Is everything okay?”

“I need time off, I want to use my vacation time for the next two weeks.”

“…. What happened Nola?”

“Nothing. So, can I?” You were harsh with your tone.

“Will the General be joining?”

“God Tseng! Can I have the time off or what?!”

“…. Of course. Where will you be travelling, I’ll need to set up someone to come and watch.”

“No. I will be going alone. No watch. No Sephiroth. No Zack. No you. No Turks…. I don’t know where I’ll be going yet.”

“Nola, I don’t think this is wise.”

“If I wanted your opinion, I would have asked for it.”

He paused. “Okay, apologies. Can I suggest a place?”

You sighed. “Where?”

“The Turks have a private villa in Costa Del Sol. It’s very private, away from everyone else, so you’ll be safe.”

“Are there cameras?”

“No.”

“Okay, yea I would like to stay there if possible.”

“I’ll make the call and set up your transportation. When will you leave?”

“First thing tomorrow.”

“I can manage that….. Nola did something happen with the General?” You could tell he was being careful with his words. 

“Tseng, please.” You begged. 

“I do not condone to this, but I will not go against your wishes Nola, I can only say be safe.”

“Thanks Tseng, I appreciate it. Goodbye.” You hung up before he answered.

You spoke harshly, and rude but you didn’t need another person telling you what to do. You needed space from everything and everyone.

You walked over to your desk, grabbing some sheets of paper. Deciding to write a letter to Sephiroth. You needed to tell him how you felt, your worries lately and let him know that you did appreciate his help and everything he’s done, but that he won’t always be there. You needed to live again, normally. You cried as you finished the letter, signing off with ‘Love you, please do not contact me until I’m back’

You wrote one to Zack as well.

When morning came, you packed your suitcase, delivered the letters to both men. Slipping them both under their doors. As you reached the helicopter pad, Tseng was standing there. Before he could open his mouth, you brought up your hand to stop him.

“Please Tseng, I need this. I understand your worried but please respect my wishes. I’ll be safe, I always am. But during this time, I won’t have my phone on, I need to disconnect.” You smiled weakly as you let your hand touch the side of his face, he leaned into your touch and only nodded as you exited.

Your phone buzzed a few times, you saw who messaged you, Sephiroth and Zack, but when the helicopter took off, you shut your phone down. Peering out the window, watching once again Midgar becoming a speck in the distance.


	19. Chapter 19

Water splashed upon your feet, washing away the sorrow… well you wished it was that easy. You watched as white caps formed in the distance, small waves became bigger as they reached the shore, the sun’s rays heated your body, comforting you like a warm blanket. You dug your toes in the sand, covering them, only for it to be cleaned a second later.

The first couple of days here, were sad, knowing how you left Sephiroth and how you didn’t say goodbye in person. You also felt bad on how you spoke to Tseng. But now, you were feeling better. It was nice to not have anyone following you. Tseng was right, the private villa here was secluded from the rest, you felt pretty safe here. You peered down at your watch, seeing the time, you realized you had to make it back to the villa in order for your massage.

You picked up your sandals and walked along the beach up to the villa, the sand burned your soles as you walked. Making your way up to the door, you quickly washed your feet before entering. Not a second later the doorbell rang, knowing it was the masseuse.

God, you couldn't remember the last time you were this loose. Your hour-long massage did wonders to your body. The pain in your shoulders disappeared along with the aches in your back, the only pain that occupied your body was in your heart.

You still couldn’t get rid of the guilt that you felt. So, you decided to text Zack quickly, letting him know all was good. You turned on your phone and you swore it buzzed for 10 minutes straight.

10 missed messages from Sephiroth

5 missed calls from Sephiroth

2 voicemails

8 missed messages from Zack

You quickly texted Zack, letting him know all was fine with you. You were safe and that you were shutting your phone off after this message was sent. You couldn’t bring yourself to text Sephiroth, as much as you wanted to, it would just be too hard.

You threw your phone on the bed, deciding that you needed a drink to calm your nerves.  
______________________________________________________________________________________

Zack peered down at his phone, wiping the sweat from his brow from the training he accomplished by himself. He shook his head at Nola’s message. Yes, he was pissed she left without saying it in person, but deep down, he knew she needed to figure some stuff out. The same couldn’t be said about Sephiroth.

The man nearly killed you the other day in training, releasing all anger. You did try to reason with him, but he was too blinded by his feelings for Nola. You knew Sephiroth doubled the watch duty for her, but like Nola, you knew it couldn’t go on forever.

“Fair.”

Zack turned around, seeing Sephiroth making his way down the hall. “Hey General, something I can help with?” You quickly put your phone into your back pocket. 

“Has Nola messaged you at all?” His voice contained a sorrow, a sorrow that not everyone would pick up, but being around the fearsome General, you could pick up on the little slips in his emotions. 

Zack hesitated for a split second before answering. “No.”

The General took a few intimidating steps forward. “Lying to your superiors will not help with your promotion to becoming a 1st.”

Shit.

“She did sir, only to tell me she was safe but turning off her phone immediately again.”

A flicker of pain flashed behind Sephiroth’s eyes, followed by his cold “General eyes.”

Zack knew what that meant. Sephiroth stalked away from the young man. Zack quickly jogging up to meet him.

“Uhhh sir, I know this isn’t my place but don’t do anything…” He trailed off. 

Sephiroth stopped moving to reply. “And what are you implying?”

“Uhhh, to not contact her….sir” His voice squeaked at the end. 

Sephiroth eyed the soldier before continuing his strides. Zack knew the General made up his mind, so he decided to keep an eye on him, it was only a matter of time before he knew Sephiroth couldn't keep away.   
_____________________________________________________________________________________

“Here you go darling, another whisky sour for ya!” The waitress handed you, your drink as you sat at a table in the corner. Away from the hustle of the evening crowd. 

“Thank you.” You smiled up at her.

The bar was full tonight, which for once didn’t bug you. You needed to be surrounded by noise other than the voices in your head telling you to go home. You were on your second drink, knowing very well to not drink too much alone. You watched as couples danced, kissed, friends laughed and cheers. You missed him. Missed his touch, his eyes, his warmth, missed how he felt. Did you wreck it all by coming here? Did you lose him?

You polished off your drink, the waitress came by to pick up your empty glass before dropping another in front of you.

“Oh, sorry, I didn’t order another one.”

“I know darling, it’s from the men other there.” She pointed towards a table full of local men, but no one turned around. 

“Oh, well thank you.” You took a slip of the drink.

Within minutes the drink was gone. You didn’t order anymore, you could already feel the buzzing through your body. You rested your hands on the table, realizing you may have drank it too fast, your head was swimming a tad. Your vision became a bit blurry. You took a few breaths before deciding you should head back.

A man sat down at your table, you turned your head too fast, causing you to get lightheaded.

“We just keep running into one another huh?” A deep sinister voice spoke. 

Your eyes tried to focus on who was talking but they just looked like a blur.

“Did you enjoy my drink? Nola.”

You rubbed your eyes, when your vision cleared, you realized who it was…. Derek. Your heart sank. 

“Wh-aa-t?” You slurred.

“Oh, don’t worry, I didn’t poison you. That would be too easy and quick. No, it’s just a small sleeping pill to knock you out.” 

You stood up, gripping the table with both hands to steady you. He quickly stood up with you and came by your side, wrapping both arms around your waist, his mouth was on your ear as he spoke.

“Don’t worry babe, I got you.”

You tired to resist but your body was going slack, soon you lost feeling in your legs, but he picked you up, carrying you bridal style. Onlookers watched, they seemed concerned.

“Don’t worry everyone! My wife has just had too much to drink.” He laughed. Everyone bought it. You tried to make eye contact with anyone, tried to send them any sign you were not okay. 

He carried you out the doors, you tired to scream, tried to kick but as soon as the fresh air hit your face, you blacked out.  
__________________________________________________________________________________________

“Mmmmm.” You groaned, lifting your head, it took several moments before your eyes could focus, the sleeping pill wearing off. You moved your body, only to see your hands were tied behind your back with rope. Your legs tied with rope as well to the chair you occupied. You looked around, it smelt like old water, it was dark, aside from small lanterns. You were in a cave. You struggled to move your hands but the knot was tight.

You looked around, seeing pictures of everyone you knew, you saw weapons covering the entire wall, the light hit the knives that lined it. 

“Finally awake.” An irritated Derek spoke. 

Derek made his way to you from the dark corner he stood in. He brought a chair, scrapping it across the floor, placing it in front of you. He sat down, smiling. Flashing his perfect teeth. 

“I’m so glad we could meet again Nola.”

“What do you want with me?” You spat. 

“Sadly, nothing. I told you once, you’re only a pawn.” He slid his hand up your exposed thigh.

You jerked your leg, he laughed at your attempt to shrug him off.

“Awe, that’s right, your taken now huh? But where is this boyfriend of yours now?” He cooed. 

You didn’t reply.

“Hm, that’s what I thought. Poor Nola, once again in danger.”

“Screw you!” You yelled.

“You know, I feared this day wouldn’t come. But here you are, practically making it too easy for me. It was only a matter of time before someone would slip up. I just didn’t think you would make it this easy for me.”

You spit in his face. He wiped away your saliva before standing up and backhanding you. Your face whipped to the side, you tasted blood in your mouth as you faced him.

“That is very foolish of you Nola, it’s in your best interest to not anger me.”

“Why the hell not! Are you going to torture me? Kill me?! Just get it over with then!” You screamed at the top of your lungs.

He came to sit down again, this time wiping the blood that trickled from your mouth, he brought his finger up to his face, admiring the red blotch before licking it off. The sight made your stomach turn.

“Oh, I’m going to enjoy this.” He quickly stood, retrieving a dagger from the wall. He came behind you, carefully dragging the blade across your throat, not drawing blood, only to taunt you. “You know, I feel sorry for you. My revenge lies with others but you, you just got caught in the middle. Love can be a powerful thing, I didn’t think the all mighty General would ever experience such emotions but when you dropped into his life, well, let’s just say it made you his biggest weakness.”

He walked around you, once again dragging the dagger over your body, this time down your arm.

“Go fuck yourself!” You yelled, rattling your hands behind your back, the rope slowly burning your wrists. 

He took the knife and stabbed it into your thigh. You yelled in agony, the pain shot through your body, you bit your lips, drawing more blood. You cried, tears dropping onto your legs as you eyed the blade in you.

“We don’t need that kind of language Nola.”

“Oh… I’m so sorry…. GO FUCK YOURSELF!” You screamed at him.

He looked down at you, smiling at your defiance. “So stupid, such a pity.” He twisted the dagger in your thigh. You screamed more, blood was spewing from the wound, covering the floor beneath you. “If only you stayed home right? That’s what your thinking?”

You didn’t respond, he grabbed your face, forcing your head to look at him. “Isn’t it!!” He yelled at you.

“Yes!” You cried through your tears.

“But your just so stupid aren’t you?!”

Again, you didn’t respond this time you squeezed your face.

“YES! I’m so stupid!” You cried some more.

He laughed, throwing his head back, laughing like a maniac.

After a long pause, you did your best to speak up.

“Why are you doing this?” Your voice was shaky. 

“Don’t pretend you don’t know. I was removed from the soldier program over small incidents, and yet the 1st class soldiers walk around, killing innocent people in pointless wars. Your own boyfriend is nothing more than a war machine, making him a hero!”

“So, you want revenge because they kicked you out, causing you to lose what? Your own future fame?” You mocked. 

“Precisely. They took away any chance I had to be a hero, when I was kicked out there was no way I could go back into society without being marked a ‘bad’ man”

“That is so pitiful.” You spat.

“To you maybe. But… enough about me….” He smiled at you, showing his teeth once again. He walked to your sitting form, gently put his finger on top of the hilt of the dagger. Your teary eyes pleaded with him to stop, but he did not. He applied pressure on the hilt, you held in your scream for as long as you could before passing out from the agonizing pain.


	20. Chapter 20

Sephiroth made his way to the top of the tower, his hands were clenched on either side, he gritted his teeth and walked towards the helicopter. His boots thumping on the ground with purpose. Workers scrambled out of the way as they could all feel the anger washing over the silver General. 

The only thing that occupied his mind was Nola. Her not being around, made him feel things he’s never felt. He carried around her letter since she left, securely kept in his inside jacket pocket on his left side. He knew he fucked up that night when he walked away. But he had to. She didn’t respond to his question. Did she really need space from you? Or just less protection? You shook your head, banishing away any thoughts.

But, how could you? Your apartment smelt like her. Your bed smelt like her. And God, her letter, she said she loves you. You weren’t used to these emotions, she woken up something that was buried deep within you. You needed her in your life, you couldn’t be without her. So when you found out she texted Zack and not you, you couldn’t wait anymore. You made the decision to see her….. or at least see her without her seeing you. Shouldn’t be too hard, you being a 1st class soldier and General. You swung open the helicopter door and froze. 

“Fair… what are you doing here?”

“I could ask you the same thing Sephiroth.” Zack lifted his eyes from his phone regarding the sneaky General. 

“I'm going on a mission, now please leave.” Sephiroth waved his hand to the side. 

“Ha! That is bullshit! I knew the moment you cancelled our trainings for the rest of the week, that you were up to something!”

“I have a mission Zack now please exit or I will drag you out.”

“Don’t do this Sephiroth. She said to leave her alone, going to see her will only make it worse.”

“I don’t know—”

“Stop lying…. I know what your up to.”

Sephiroth sighed. “….. Zack, I need to see her.”

Shaking his head Zack spoke. “Look, I know how much you care about her, but you need to listen to what she wants, this isn’t going to help your relationship. It’ll just push her away.”

Sephiroth looked away from the young soldier. Maybe he should stop…. Screw it. Sephiroth hopped in and sat across from Zack, he spoke to the pilot then turned his attention to Zack once more. 

“I do not care Zack. If this wrecks my relationship with Nola…. I need to see her, need to know she’s safe.”

Zack watched as his superior struggled internally. But deep down, he wanted the same thing as him, he wanted to see Nola in person, to know she was okay.

“I’m coming with you then.”

Sephiroth’s eyebrows raised. “What happened to listening to her?”

“Well, if she finds out then, I guess I’ll have to live with that. So, let’s go before I change my mind.”

Sephiroth’s lip tugged up, he slammed the door shut and focused all his thoughts on Nola once more.  
___________________________________________________________________________________________  
Sephiroth and Zack made it to Costa Del Sol. They changed out of their uniforms into civilian clothes. They needed to stay hidden, in case someone caught them, or God forbid Nola did.

Once nightfall hit, they did a sweep of the town, staying hidden in the shadows. Everything seemed normal, the streets were littered with tourists, drinking and laughing, enjoying their time in the vacation spot. Sephiroth wondered if he would come back here, with Nola one day, or if she would even go with him. His heart ached at the thought of her not being in his life. 

“Why don’t we scope out the villa? She’s probably chilling there at this time.”

“Agreed.”

They walked down an aisleway, away from the main strip, behind all the shops and restaurants. They probably looked like the very reason why they were here. If anyone were to catch them, it would be trouble.

When they got closer to the villa, Sephiroth held up his hand, indicating for Zack to stop. Obliging to the command, they stood a few meters away. Sephiroth used his enhanced hearing. After a few moments he realized it was oddly quiet. No movement, no deep sleep breathing, no water being used, no dishes clanging together, absolutely nothing.

“Something isn’t right.” He moved towards the front entrance of the villa, Zack quickly grabbed his arm, forcing him to turn.

“What are you doing! Were supposed to stay hidden, not enter the damn place.”

“There is no sound, not even breathing Zack, she isn’t here.”

He continued his way to the front, pulling out the key he stole from the Turks before he left, he inserted the key and opened the door. The blinds were all open, the bed was still made, no sign of Nola.

“It all looks normal to me.” Zack stated.

But Sephiroth couldn’t shake this feeling. It didn’t feel right. “I don’t like this Zack; something isn’t adding up.”

“What do you mean? It all looks normal to me.”

“It’s 11:30 pm…. And she isn’t here. Do you think she is really out right now?”

Zack peered up at the clock, not realizing how late it truly was. But he did make a point, Nola could barely stay up past 10pm, so, where was she? “So, what now?”

“We go back out.” Sephiroth walked back outside, locking the door behind them both before entering the aisleway again.

They continued to search for over an hour before entering a bar on the other side of town. They sat in the corner away from the rest of the late night drinkers, too drunk to really know who they were. A waitress came by with some water, eyed them suspiciously. The two paid her no attention.

“Sephiroth, what do we do now? We looked everywhere for her.”

Sephiroth stayed silent, staring at nothing. His mind was racing, trying to figure out where the hell she was. He feared the worse, if he lost her….. he would destroy it all. Broken out of his train of thought, a feminine voice spoke.

“Can I help you gentleman? You don’t look like regulars.”

Zack looked up from his glass to answer the waitress. “Uhh were actually looking for a friend, we were supposed to meet up with her, but she never showed up.” He took out his phone and showed a picture of Nola, the one taken when they first got lunch together.

The waitress bent down, squinting at the photo. “Oh! Yes! I’ve seen her here, such a sweet gal. She was here alone but then her husband joined her.”

Sephiroth stood up, towering over the lady, she took a step back as she craned her neck to make eye contact. “Husband? What did he look like? What happened?!”

“Uhhhh, she was drinking alone when her husband came to join her. I guess she drank too much because she almost fell over, but he picked her up and carried her out.”

“Where.Did.They.Go?” Sephiroth spoke very slowly, his blood was boiling.

“Sorry, I don’t know, they left, I had to work, I don’t know, I’m sorry.” She cowered to the man in front of her.

Zack interjected. “It’s okay! Thank you for the information. Do you know if this was the man she was with?” He showed a picture of Derek.

“Yes, that’s the man.”

At the answer they both feared, they walked out of the bar, towards the villa.

Sephiroth paced from one side of the room to the next. His hands were balled into fists. He should have been here sooner; he shouldn’t have let her go. This was his fault, what if she’s hurt? Or worse….

“If he touches her, I’ll kill him.” Sephiroth growled.

Zack tensed at the sight. He has never seen the General act this way before. His usual cold, emotionless mask was cracked. “We need to stay calm and focused right now. We don’t have any clue as to where she is. Throwing out threats will not make the situation any better.”

Sephiroth stopped moving and watched Zack speak. He knew Zack was right, but his anger, his bloodlust was taking over. Zack who was picking up on his turmoil tried to reason more.

“What would Nola want? Would she want you to terrorize the town? Start threatening people? Or would she want you to take a moment before acting?”

Sephiroth moved to sit beside Zack. “Then what do you suggest?” His voice had a hint of defeat and sadness. 

“We need to call Tseng and everyone. We all know how dangerous this man is. And we need more manpower than just the two of us. We won’t be able to cover much ground.”

Sephiroth ground his teeth, just mentioning Tseng made him angry, but he knew they needed help. “Fine.”

Zack picked up his phone and called Tseng, Angeal and Genesis. He informed them on what was happening. They all eagerly obliged, they would leave in the morning.

“See? Help is on the way, we will find her Sephiroth. I know we will.”

Zack tried his best to convince the General, but in reality, he needed convincing himself. He saw the reports on Derek, he knew his strength, his instability and he knew how many weapons and materia he stole from Shinra. All these devices could harm his friend. True, he had the same want to find Nola, but he didn’t have the bloodlust that was plastered on Sephiroth’s face.


	21. Chapter 21

Warm blood was trickling down your leg, settling into a pool of dark red under your feet, the dagger still inside. Your mind was groggy, you didn't know how long you were unconscious for, or how long it's been since Derek drugged you. This all seemed too familiar. Losing all this blood, was the same feeling as with your injury from the helicopter crash. You wiggled your hands slowly, trying your best to not attract Derek. But you couldn’t make too much noise, otherwise he would surely take notice.

All sense of time was lost and it was the least of your worries. You raised your head, groaning at the stiffness of your bones. You wanted so much to cry, the pain was unbearable. Was this how you would die? By the hands of this man? Your last words with the people you cared and loved for, were rude, harsh and not what you wanted. You survived your parent’s car crash, survived the Airbuster, survived the helicopter crash and now, you’ll die by this man.

Derek rose from his cot, sipping some water. He sat in front of you, greedily gulping it back. Your mouth was dry, you wanted so badly to have some, and he knew that, he was torturing you everyway he could.

“Want some?” He asked, a slight glimmer in his eyes. 

You chose not to respond.

“Suit yourself.” He chugged back the entire bottle, throwing it across the room. He started to laugh, startling you.

“What’s…so funny?” You barely were able to talk, as your words came out slowly. 

“Just thinking of how stupid and foolish you are. I still can’t believe how easy it was to get you, honestly, it’s quite pathetic. Your parents are probably rolling in their graves right now.”

You lunged for him, practically growling. He didn't move a muscle. 

“Ohhhhh did I hit a nerve? What’s the matter Nola? Don’t want to talk about your parents?”

“Screw you, you psychopath!”

He sat up and backhanded you. Your head felt like it spun around fully at the blow. More blood leaked from your mouth; your eyes were starting to swell up.

He brought his face close to yours, you smelt the foulness of his breath. “You’re just a sad, pathetic, little girl who can barely handle a small smack from me.”

He laughed walking away from you. But little did he know, you were loosening the knot on your hands more and more. And when he smacked you or twisted the dagger in your thigh, it gave you the opportunity to yelp and scream, masking the sound of the rope coming undone. He kept calling you stupid and weak, but you weren’t, you may have been Sephiroth’s weakness, which is why he came for you, but you knew his weakness, his ego.

It had been a few hours since the last assault and you knew you were close to removing the knot from your hands, but what about your feet? There is no way you could remove them without him knowing. Your eyes looked at the blade in you. If you could remove your hands, grab the blade and attack him, you could easily slice the rope around your feet and run!

But, he’s too strong, you would need to…. Kill him…. In order to have an advantage. Could you kill someone? Even this man? Did you have the heart too? Would it not ruin you? Or did you want to die instead…

“It’s a shame really, for such a pretty girl to get tied up in all this.”

“Then let me go! Please, let me go.” You begged. 

“It’s too late Nola, besides, don’t you want to see your family? You’ll be reunited.” His voice was soft and comforting. He casually strolled his way over to you, his eyes weren’t on you, but on all his work around the cave.

You started to cry, the pain in your leg was too much, your eyes were swollen from his hits. You were mumbling sweet nothings to yourself.

He looked up from his work and came to sit in front of you. His hand gently touched the side of your face, it was warm and felt nice on your bruises. You closed your eyes, feeling disgusted in yourself for enjoying this affection. He bent forward, leaning so you could hear his soft whispers.

“Don’t you want to see them again? To run towards them. To hug them?”

You opened your eyes, your dazzling blood shot green eyes bored into his blue mako ones, you swore you saw a hint of regret behind his. You nodded your head. He smiled.

“Wouldn’t it be nice to be a family again? To be rid from this horrific place?”

You nodded again. 

His hand wiped away your tears, gently caressing your face, the pads of his thumbs rubbing small circles by your temples. 

He leaned forward more, his lips hovering above the curve of your ear. “Nola…. Close your eyes.” Your body was surrounded by serenity. 

You knew what his message meant, this façade, he was going to kill you now. He conditioned you, made it easier to be coasted in.

You heard a small ting sound; you knew it was another blade or dagger he had. You peaked through your eyelashes and saw he was looking down at the blade in his hand, letting it dance in the small light. You knew this was your chance. If you failed and got killed anyways, then you would be fine with that. As he admired the blade, you took this as your window of opportunity. 

You wiggled free from the rope, it hit the floor, his eyes darted to you. You lunged for him, taking him by surprise, he fell over his chair, you fell with him.

You landed beside him on the floor face down, rolling yourself with the chair still attached to you, the blade in your thigh pushed in further, you screamed. You looked up and he was already on his feet, he dashed towards you, you yanked the blade out of your thigh, closed your eyes and slashed the dagger, moving it from your left side to your right in a quick motion.

You waited for the pain, waited to be killed, but nothing happened. You still held the dagger in front of you, your hand trembled. You opened your eyes and saw him crouched by you, his eyes were full of surprise. He dropped the weapon from his hands, clanging to the ground. You breathed through your nose fast, waiting for him to do something. All time seemed to have stopped. 

His hand went up to his neck, touched it slightly. You watched the movement, within seconds blood was spewing from a gash, it sprayed on your body. He tumbled backwards, landing on his back with a thud. You watched in horror, unsure of what had just happened. 

You took the dagger that was in your hand and cut the rope that still bind you to the chair, you could barely stand up, you crawled to him, cautiously. He made muffled sounds, groans almost. When you got closer to him, you threw away the blade that he dropped earlier. You kept yours tightly gripped in your trembling hands.

“What have I done?!” You spoke more to yourself. Your heart dropped. You let go of the dagger and crawled over top of him, your hands pressed down on the gash that stretched from one side of his throat to the other. You tried to stop the bleeding. You cried, tears falling on his face.

His hands came up, slowly and grabbed yours. You made eye contact, he removed your hands from his neck, allowing the blood to flow freely.

“I—I need to help you. I—I’m so sorry.” You stuttered.

He smiled at you, still holding your hands in his. His eyes never breaking contact with you, they looked up, before rolling back into his head, his hands dropped to the ground. You rolled back to sit on your butt beside him.

You were shaking. Shocked. What did you do? How could you do this? You looked at your hands, now stained with his blood. 

You sat there for moments, watching the blood continue to flow from his neck. You glanced down at your own leg, seeing it was bleeding as well. You looked around the room, you crawled over to the main table, latching on the top, pulling yourself up. You saw a box in the corner, a first aid kit. It only had gauze in it, so you wrapped the entirety of it around your thigh.

You hobbled over to Derek. Sat down beside him. You brought his hands up and rested them nicely over his stomach. You could no longer feel a heartbeat. You bent down to his mouth, moved your ear over top, nothing came out. You knew he was dead.

You had to leave. You couldn’t stay here any longer.

You barely made it out of the cave, slipping multiple times on the algae covered rocks. Your hands were covered in small cuts from the side of the sharp cliff.

When you reached solid ground, you collapsed. The fresh air hit your face, you were free, you were alive.... but at what cost?

How do I get back?

You looked around and didn’t see any lights, it was pitch black. If you walked in one direction, it could take you further away from help, and your thigh was throbbing right now. You laid on the ground, peering up at the stars. It was quiet, apart from your own breathing.

What do I do?

The grass cooled your back, it felt nice to be on something soft. Maybe if you just closed your eyes for a moment. It wouldn’t hurt would it? You shut them. Listening to the wind. Listening to the crickets chirping, the distant waves hitting the shore. 

“Sweetie, you need to wake up.”

You darted forward, startled by the voice. You looked ahead, saw nothing, you turned to look behind you, your jaw dropped.

“Mom?”

Your mom stood there, she was dressed in all white, a faint green glow surrounded her. A figure came from behind, your dad was there too.

You rubbed your eyes. “This can’t be real.”

Your mom laughed. “It isn’t sweetie. But you need to get up.”

“Mom please, come back.”

“You know we can’t do that.”

“But I need you!” You cried, standing up now, you walked towards them until your dad held up his hand, halting you.

“Your mother’s right darling. You need to move.”

“But where? What do I do? I can’t!”

“You can.”

“Please, I need help, I don’t want you to leave me again." The tears flowing freely down your face. 

“We are always with you sweetie, we’re so proud of you. You’ve grown up so much.”

You took a step forward, but they took one back. Your dad looked to his right, your mom joined him.

“Go. You need to leave now.”

“But—”

“No buts young lady. Now go, and just remember, we are always with you. We love you very much.”

“I love you guys too.” You blinked. 

And just like that they were gone. You awoke, got to your feet in an instant. Was that all a dream? You looked in the direction your parents glanced to before they disappeared and started to walk. Hoping you would reach civilization.


End file.
